Light in the Shadow King
by Jenna Cassie Herdz
Summary: Politics. That's all it was to him. A give and take situation. A growing medical clinic for his family. All he had to do was marry her. The problem was the girl herself. It seemed it wasn't all politics to her.
1. Broken Promise

**A/N:** welcome to my third Ouran High School Host Club fanfic! first readers, i hope you all enjoy reading this story, and for those of you who are back again after reading one or both of my other fics, welcome back, and i hope this story meets your expectations! (why do i feel like i'm a cross between Tamaki and C-3PO from Star Wars?) and, without further ado, i present the first chapter! enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 1: Broken Promise**_

"Hitomi!"

She turned to stare with glowing blue eyes under short black hair and a smile on her face as a girl with light, honey brown eyes and long black hair pulled up into a bun ran toward her then stopped in front of her, panting for breath.

"What's wrong, Mika?" she asked the panting girl who grinned as she straightened and pointed at her.

"You are coming with me to the Host Club _right now_!" Mika grinned and Hitomi blinked at her friend in surprise a few times.

"No," she replied, flatly after a moment and turned to walk away as Mika's jaw dropped in shock.

"But, why not?!" Mika squeaked as she caught up with Hitomi to stand in front of her and walk backwards as they continued down the hall. "The Host Club is so great! And if you want, you can designate the host _I'm_ seeing until you figure out which one you _really_ want! Please! You know how important this is to me!"

"I said 'no', Mika," Hitomi replied again. "I don't want to. I can be doing so many other things rather than being doted on by guys who're just _pretending_ to like me."

"That's not what it is!" Mika argued, stopping and making the girl in front of her stop. "Ok, sure, they sweet talk the girls and make them feel special, but the point is to make the girls feel happy! Make them feel special and loved, even for a moment!"

"But I don't want it for just a _moment_," Hitomi argued. "I want it for _always_."

"Well, yeah, we all do," Mika agreed. "But even though this is temporary, it's just until we can find guys of our own who we love, and love _us_ in return. At least, that's how _I_ see it."

Hitomi sighed and rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on. She needed to go home and study. She didn't have time to be sitting at a table of tea, coffee and cakes with a bunch of girls all clamoring for the attention of the boy they had chosen to sit with or be doted upon. To her, it was nothing but a waste of time, and she could never understand why her friend liked it so much. She'd seen it once before. It was all pretty words, and wonderful feelings, but it was all fleeting and over within a few moments before they off to the next girl. It was pointless!

_Not only that_, she thought to herself, _but I promised him I wouldn't go, even if I wanted to._

"_Please_, Hitomi!" Mika nearly whined, taking one of her friend's hands. "It would mean _so_ much to me for you to enjoy this with me!"

Hitomi gave a groan at her friend's begging face. She could never resist the Face, however, it had gotten her into trouble more often than not. With another sigh, she finally nodded, knowing her friend wouldn't give up until she said 'yes.' Mika grinned and hugged her friend fiercely, then grabbed her hand and dragged her back down the hall.

"This is going to be so great!" she cheered, still running. "Tamaki will be so thrilled to have another Princess to dote on!"

"T-Tamaki?!" Hitomi squeaked as they rounded a corner, still being dragged by Mika. "Tamaki's your host?!"

"Yeah!" Mika grinned. "He's _so_ dreamy!"

"Yeah," Hitomi grumbled. "I know."

She'd met Tamaki Suou when she had been a first year. He was a charming guy, handsome, tall…any girl's dream, except hers. The thought of being doted on by him gave her no special thrill. She always thought his words were empty. You wouldn't say the things he said to a girl unless you were in love with her. That's the way _she_ saw it, anyway.

Mika finally stopped when they reached the door of the Third Music room and now both girls panted from running as they stopped behind the crowd of girls waiting for the Host Club to open.

"What theme do you think they'll have today?" one girl asked her friend, excitedly.

"I hope it's something dreamy!" her friend replied, just as excited.

"Theme?" Hitomi questioned Mika in a whispered.

"The club always has a different theme they dress in," Mika explained, then giggled, "Yesterday, they were all dressed as knights!"

"Really?" Hitomi nodded and Mika nodded excitedly. Now she was a little intrigued. What did they have planned for the girls today, she wondered.

The doors suddenly began to open slowly and the girls around them held their breath as they all walked into the room slowly.

"Welcome!" a chorus of male voices greeted their ears and Mika giggled excitedly once everyone had shuffled in and was able to see the boys and their theme of the day that made Hitomi blush a bit.

They were all dressed in white, their clothes slightly different but arranged in a sexy sort of way, except for one of the hosts who was in a dress that looked like it suited him a little too well.

Opening the door, they found what looked like the cover of a romance novel.

"Alright, my little darlings," the blonde boy called. "If you would all take your seats, the Host Club members will happily entertain your every whim!"

"That's Tamaki!" Mika whispered excitedly into Hitomi's ear.

"I know," Hitomi replied, but her eyes were glued to the boy with dark hair and glasses as he scribbled something into a notebook.

_Please, don't let him see me_, she prayed, silently.

"Oh, it seems we have a new guest!"

Hitomi jumped and froze when she looked in the direction of the voice and saw Tamaki walking toward herself and Mika. He stopped in front of Mika first and lifted her hand to kiss it, gently.

"Welcome back, Princess Takahashi," he murmured to her and she blushed like mad with a giggle and a nod. He then turned to Hitomi and did the same to her, and she couldn't help the blush that ignited her cheeks. "And welcome to _you_ as well, Princess…?"

He trailed off, waiting for her to finish with her name but she took a moment before she realized it then finally blurted, "Hitomi. Hitomi Sasaki."

Tamaki smiled warmly and bowed with his hand over his heart.

"Alright, Princess Sasaki," he smiled, taking Mika's hand again and pulling her a bit toward him to hold her close, but still spoke to Hitomi as he asked, "Which Host will you try out today? The Hitachiin Devils? Honey-senpai, our Lolita? Mori-senpai, the strong and silent type? The Commoner Haruhi? Cool Kyouya? Or perhaps…" He trailed off and pulled her by the hand to wrap his other arm around her and pull her close as she blushed at his actions, "…you'd like to have Prince Tamaki hold you in his arms, hm?"

"Uh…" Hitomi hummed, unable to think, being this close to a cute boy.

"She'll take _you_, Tamaki," Mika smiled, leaning on his shoulder as he still held her. "How can anyone resist saying 'no' to you?"

Tamaki looked at Mika again and smiled warmly but was drawn back to Hitomi when she took the opportunity to step out of his embrace.

"A-Actually, I think I should just go home," she mumbled. "I…Thank you for this, Mika, but I really shouldn't have come."

"No!" Mika cried, running to her friend to take her hands. "You have to stay! Please?! Just for a little while?!"

"Mika---"

"Tamaki doesn't even have to dote on you!" Mika said, quickly. "You can just, observe!"

"I've observed it before," Hitomi replied.

"But not lately," Mika argued. "Just for a little while?"

Hitomi sighed and nodded in defeat and Mika hugged her friend tightly, but as she did, Hitomi caught sight of Tamaki who was frowning at her in what seemed like thought and concern. When Mika pulled away, she pulled her friend by the hands toward Tamaki and grinned at him.

"She's really very nice," Mika assured him and Hitomi glared at her. "I don't know what's gotten into her! Shall we go have some tea and cake, Tamaki?"

"Of course, Princess," Tamaki replied with a charming smile and pulled Mika under his arm to walk her to the couch where all his customers sat, waiting for him. Hitomi rolled her eyes, but as she followed them, she noticed Tamaki suddenly stop and he pulled her under his free arm to pull her close as they walked, making her blush.

"How lucky a Prince am I to have a beautiful girl on each arm?" he smiled, glancing between that girls and Mika giggled excitedly as Hitomi blushed a little deeper. She heard sincerity in his voice, but it was still hard for her to believe that he actually meant it. After all, they'd just met.

As he sat them on the couch and began chatting with the other girls, Hitomi chanced to take a glance at the boy with the notebook and glasses. She was slightly relieved he didn't seem to notice her, but only slightly. A part of her was a little disappointed. She tried to smile and laugh as the girls chattered around her and even when Tamaki tried charming her she was a good sport and acted as though she were swooning, even if she might have been swooning, just a little.

Mika couldn't understand what was wrong with her friend. She was usually so bubbly and full of life, but ever since she brought her here, it was like she was afraid to even crack a smile, even though she was trying to. It didn't seem like she _wanted_ to though, Mika noticed.

Hitomi stood from the couch when some of the girls were starting to leave and instead of leaving herself she headed toward one of the windows to look out at the cherry blossom trees that were blooming outside. She assured Mika she wouldn't leave without her, but the other girl still looked worried. As she stood at the window she gave another sigh.

_What am I doing here?_ she though to herself. _I shouldn't have even come here. I told him I wouldn't, and I did it anyway. What is this going to accomplish?_

"Hitomi Sasaki?"

She jumped at the sound of her name and shot her gaze to her left, a gentle blush coming to her cheeks as she met the gaze of the dark haired host with glasses.

"H-Hello Kyouya," she smiled, slightly. He only stared at her, his dark gray eyes boring a cold gaze into her glowing blue eyes so intensely that she had to look away. She cast her eyes down then turned to the window again to watch the cherry blossom trees sway in the slight breeze.

"The cherry blossoms are beautiful this year, aren't they?" she smiled, not looking away from the window but still feeling his icy gaze boring into her.

After a moment of silence she turned to him again only to find him standing so close to her that she gasped and took a slight step back, not only at his closeness but at his gaze as well.

"What are you doing here?" he wondered in a low voice so no one else could hear him.

Hitomi glanced around in shame then cast her eyes down as she twiddled her thumbs in front of her, but she could still feel him staring at her as she mumbled, "W-Well…Mika wanted me to come with her, and…she's so hard to say 'no' to."

She laughed slightly as she looked back up at him, flipping some of her hair from her face as she smiled, cutely. But when she looked back at him she shrunk back at his stare and cast her eyes down again, twiddling her thumbs.

"I know I promised I wouldn't come here," she mumbled, not looking at him. "But, Mika…" She trailed off and sighed. "Actually, I could have kept telling her 'no' but the truth is…" She chanced looking at him and was a bit relieved to see his gaze had softened just a touch. "The truth is I wanted to see you."

"We talked about this, Hitomi," he reminded her. "There's a reason I don't want you to come here."

"I know," Hitomi mumbled, casting her gaze down at her hands again.

"I thought you didn't want to see me until we were ready to formally court," Kyouya remembered. "You hated me because I saw our engagement as business and nothing more, as I recall."

"I said that," she replied, meekly. "But I didn't really _mean_ it."

"You still haven't answered my question," he reminded her and she looked up at him cautiously. "What are you doing here?"

"I told you," she said. "I wanted to see you."

"But why?" he insisted. "What could you possibly merit from seeing me? What could _I_ possibly merit from seeing you?"

Hitomi's eyes shot wide at that question, and she felt her heart clench, painfully. He only wanted to see what he could gain from her presence, and though she could think of a few things he could merit from it, they all would have been lost on the Shadow King. She knew what he meant by it, and suddenly, her hurt turned to anger as she shot a burning gaze at him that made Kyouya's eyes widen slightly in shock.

"Sometimes, people do things because they care, Kyouya!" she hissed so no one but he could hear her. "They don't think about what they could merit from it. Not everyone is like _you_!"

She tried to fight back a tear from trickling down her cheek but it squeezed out anyway and she turned quickly so that he wouldn't see her crying as she walked away. He'd seen it, and he stared at her through his glasses with wide eyes of surprise. He'd never seen her like that before and for some reason, it intrigued him.

Mika watched Hitomi hurry toward the exit and panicked. Excusing herself from Tamaki she hurried after her friend and when she caught up with her, she was just about to walk out the door.

"Hitomi! What's wrong?!" she breathed, seeing her friend was crying.

"It's nothing," Hitomi replied, shaking her head. "I have to go. Please, tell Tamaki I had a wonderful time, I just…I have to go!"

Hitomi ran down the hall before giving way to sobs as she ran and Mika stared after her friend in wonder. As Tamaki watched the scene unfold from where he sat at the couch, he looked at Kyouya who still stood at the window, staring out at the cherry blossoms and fixing his glasses.

_I may have to have a little talk with the Shadow King before the day is out_, he thought to himself, turning back as Mika came back to sit with him and his remaining customers, still confused as to her friend's behavior.

* * *

**A/N:** and there it is! the first chapter. what do you think? mystery, romance, drama and of course, comedy await the next chapter. i know this chappie wasn't that funny, but it gets funny later, i promise! reviews?


	2. Mystery Dinner Guest

**A/N:** and, here's the next chapter. enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 2: Mystery Dinner Guest**_

"Kyouya, may I talk to you for a moment?" Tamaki asked, stepping up to the dark haired boy who looked up at him from his laptop.

"Of course," he replied, looking back at the computer. "What is it, Tamaki?"

Tamaki sat at the table where Kyouya was working and crossed one leg over the other, setting his elbows on the table with his chin on his entwined fingers.

"That girl, Hitomi Sasaki?" Tamaki began and Kyouya's fingers froze on the keyboard of his laptop which Tamaki noticed. "So you _do_ know her."

Kyouya glanced at the King then turned back to his laptop and began typing again as he replied, "Yes, I know her. What about her?"

"What were the two of you talking about at the window that sent her running from the Host Club in tears?" Tamaki wondered, getting to the point. This time, Kyouya didn't falter in typing.

"She was upset about a death in the family," he lied, flatly.

"You may be able to lie to everyone else, but you _know_ you can't lie to _me_, mon ami," Tamaki smirked and Kyouya glanced at him for a second, but turned back to the laptop. "I knew you were cold, but I didn't think you could ever make a girl cry."

Kyouya stopped typing and Tamaki lowered his hands and straightened a bit, thinking his friend would finally tell him what _really_ happened, instead, the Shadow King shut the laptop, stood and walked away, making Tamaki stare after him in total disbelief.

_What's gotten into him?_ he wondered to himself. _That girl must be a special case to get him acting like __this__._

"Hey, Milord," the Hitachiin twins called in unison behind him and Tamaki turned to stare at them in question. "Look what we got."

The twins grinned, holding up a Polaroid picture each, waving them in front of the blonde as he tried to get a look at them.

"What is it?" Tamaki wondered, trying to see what they were waving at him. The twins grinned even wider and held the pictures up so he could see them, and once they came into focus, his eyes bugged out in shock. "When did you take those pictures of Haruhi?!"

"Just now, Milord," the twins replied, pulling the pictures out of his reach when he went to snatch them away. "Can't you tell? She's wearing what she did in the Host Club today."

"Give me those pictures, you perverted twins!" Tamaki snapped, reaching for said pictures but Hikaru and Kaoru kept them just out of his reach.

"_We're_ perverted?" they asked. "_You're_ the one that wants the pictures."

"I'm her daddy!" Tamaki cried. "I'm _allowed_ to have pictures of my daughter in a cute dress! Give them to me!"

"No way! These are _ours_! We took them!"

"You perverts!"

Tamaki ran after the twins as they ran away, laughing at their lord.

Kyouya shook his head at the display and started calculating expenses on his laptop again, alternating between that and the clipboard next to him as he did some math. He frowned to himself when he found an error but quickly corrected it. However, that only led to another…and another…and another. He sighed and set the pencil down to rub his eyes, his glasses above his fingers.

It was Hitomi. He was distracted now, and it was showing in his work. She had promised not to come to the Host Club, yet she came anyway. What could she possibly gain from seeing him? He remembered that _that_ was the question that had gotten him in trouble with her, but why? She knew he was always looking for a way to merit from everything he did and everyone he met. It was how he was raised. Didn't _everyone_ do it? Didn't _everyone_ look for merit? Of course they did, because every single person on the planet is selfish. Even if they say they're not, they always try to do things that benefit _themselves_. It was a way of life. Not only that, but it was survival instinct.

"Mommy!"

Tamaki's shout jolted Kyouya from his thoughts and he looked up at Tamaki who was now running toward him.

"The twins are taking pictures of Haruhi and they won't share with daddy! Punish them!"

Kyouya sighed in exasperation. He couldn't believe he was stuck with a fool for a friend sometimes.

* * *

_Sasaki Mansion..._

Hitomi stepped through the door as the servant held it open and gave a sigh as she adjusted her bag on her shoulder.

"Hey, little sister!"

She gave a small gasp and looked up to the top of the staircase to see a tall young man with golden eyes and black hair with a wide smile on his face as he hurried down the steps.

"Hi, Jiro," Hitomi smiled as best she could. After the ordeal at the Host Club, she'd been moping slightly in the car all the way home. "How's the clinic?"

"Business as usual," Jiro smiled, stepping up to his sister and pulling her into a tight hug. When she hugged him back he noticed it was a half-hearted hug and he pulled back to hold her at arms length and frown at her in worry as he asked, "What's wrong?"

Hitomi looked up at him with wide eyes but when he only waited for an answer, but she only shook her head and cast her eyes down but he wouldn't have it.

"Did something happen in school today?" he asked and she only shook her head again, but he could tell she was lying. "Hitomi, what happened?"

There was a long pause before she finally looked up at him with a wide smile and said, "It's nothing, really! Nothing at all! How was your day, big brother?"

Jiro blinked wide eyes at her a few times, knowing she was only putting up a front because she didn't want him to worry. He would anyway, but he decided not to push it.

"I'd tell you, but we're having a guest come over once Keiji comes back from the clinic," he smiled, tousling her hair a bit and she frowned.

"A guest?" she echoed as they headed back to the stairs and Jiro nodded.

"Yes, a guest for dinner," he smiled as they reached the top of the stairs.

"Who is it?" she wondered and Jiro only grinned.

"It's a surprise," he replied, tousling her hair again then turned and headed down the hall behind him. "Dress your best, little sis!"

"But, why?" Hitomi called, wanting desperately to know who this surprise dinner guest was.

"Because you have to look nice!" Jiro called, still walking. "Wear a pretty dress." He spun around with a grin and suggested, "Wear that cute little black number you wore to the Christmas party last year!"

"The Christmas…?" Hitomi trailed off with a frown then blushed when she remembered which dress he was talking about and shouted, "Jiro Sasaki! Why the hell do you want me to wear that dress?!"

"To look nice for our guest, Hitomi!" Jiro grinned, heading into a room in the hall. "Hurry up, now, little sister!"

"J-Jiro!" Hitomi called, but she was ignored and she sighed as she turned to walk down the other end of the hall but was stopped when the front door opened. A young man, older than herself but younger than Jiro, marched through the door. Her jaw was set, his fists were clenched and his amber eyes stared a burning gaze ahead through strands of brown hair.

"Keiji," Hitomi smiled, gently. "Welcome home."

"Thank you, Hitomi," he nodded, shortly as he stomped up the stairs and asked, "Where's Jiro?"

"I-In his room," she frowned, pointing down the hall and without another word, just a nod of thanks, he headed that way. "What's wrong?"

He didn't answer as he only pounded on the door to their brother's room.

"Who is it?" Hitomi heard Jiro call through the door.

"You know goddamn well who it is, Jiro!" Keiji shouted back. "Open this door!"

The door opened and Hitomi saw her older brother disappear into the room and heard the door slam shut. She growled and stomped a foot in irritation that no one was telling her anything and turned on a heel to stomp down the hall to her room.

"Why are boys such _jerks_?!" she spat, stomping into her room and slamming the door.

* * *

"What the _hell_ are you thinking?!" Keiji spat at his brother as Jiro only sifted through some clothes in his closet. "Inviting _him_ to dinner?! Hitomi is gonna _kill_ you!"

"I doubt that," Jiro retorted, not looking at his enraged younger brother. "You know how she admires him."

"Just because _she_ does, doesn't mean _I_ have to," Keiji muttered, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Oh ho, so _that's_ what it is," Jiro chuckled, finally pulling out a light blue dress shirt and heading to his bed to lay it out. "_You_ don't want him at dinner, am I right?"

"Damn right!" Keiji spat, marching toward Jiro and gripping his arm to turn him so they were facing each other. "He doesn't give a _crap_ about Hitomi! Even if _she_ 'admires' him, _he_ doesn't care either way! It's all business to him!"

"That's because it _is_ business, Keiji," Jiro hissed.

"This is why I _hate_ politics!" Keiji shot back. "It's all _business_, no feelings whatsoever!"

"You think _I_ like this any more than _you_ do?!" Jiro spat. "You think I _wanted_ dad to arrange this marriage for her?! I _know_ you hate it! _I_ hate it, but there's nothing we can do about it now! It's up to those two. They know it'll merit _both_ families if they marry later, and if _she_ doesn't know it, _he_ sure as hell does. They know that some things _have_ to be done."

"But what about what they _want_?" Keiji demanded. "What if they get married and one of them falls in love with someone else? What _then_?!"

"Then _they_ will have to deal with it," Jiro replied, walking back to his closet. "They're both a lot more mature than I'm sure we give them credit for."

"Yeah, well I still don't like it," Keiji grumbled, crossing his arms again and scowling.

"Neither do I," Jiro assured him, sifting through his closet again for some pants. "But it's what mom and dad wanted."

"Yeah," Keiji groaned. "I know."

Jiro stopped sifting through his clothes for a moment but didn't look at his brother as he wondered, "You wanna know what I think of him?"

Keiji looked up at his older brother as he looked at him over his shoulder and the younger man nodded.

"I think Kyouya Ootori will treat her as best he can," Jiro replied, honestly. "Even if they don't love each other, he'll try to do right by her."

Keiji cast his eyes to the floor in thought then nodded in agreement and mumbled, "Yeah. I can see that in him."

* * *

_Later..._

Hitomi sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror then sneered at her image. She wore the dress her Jiro had suggested, but she wasn't thrilled about it. Whoever this mystery guest was, she was sure that _this_ get-up wasn't going to impress them.

The black dress was made of a flowy, silk-like fabric with long sleeves, a modest rounded collar and a hem that fell just above her knees but showed off a good amount of her slender legs. She decided to wear white, slip-on heels with a square toe, and chose to wear her hair straight with only a slight flip on the bottom, unlike her usual style where she would flip it dramatically.

A knock on the door made her jump and look away from the mirror then hurry to the door. She opened it to reveal her older brother, Keiji, in a black dress shirt, black pants and black shoes. He stared at her with wide, amber eyes filled with shock and she frowned at him.

"What's wrong, Keiji?" she asked and he shook his expression away.

"Nothing," he finally replied. "You…You just look really great. I mean, you look all grown up already."

"Stupid Jiro told me to wear this stupid dress," she muttered, tugging at it uncomfortably with a slight blush. "He said I had to look good for our guest, whoever it is."

"Well, you've certainly out-done yourself," Keiji smiled, holding a hand out to her. "May I escort you to the dining room, sister?"

Hitomi giggled, unable to help herself from doing so then nodded and took his hand, saying, "Why, yes, you may, big brother."

He took her hand and coiled her arm around his then quickly kissed her head as she stood closer.

"Sorry I didn't really say 'hi' to you earlier," he apologized as they walked down the hall. "I was mad at Jiro."

"When are _not_ mad at Jiro?" Hitomi laughed and Keiji glared at her, comically. The sound of the front doorbell ringing caught their attention and Hitomi quickened her pace, nearly dragging Keiji with her toward the stairs.

"Wait! Hitomi! Slow down!"

They came to a dead stop at the top step and when she caught sight of Jiro and their mystery guest for dinner, her eyes widened in disbelief and she shot back into the hall before the guest could see her, dragging Keiji with her.

"Hitomi! What---?!"

"Why didn't anyone _tell_ me it Kyouya who was coming for dinner?!" she hissed, pulling him toward her by the collar of his shirt.

"Hey! You're wrinkling the shirt!" Keiji complained and Hitomi let go of his collar but held his arm.

"Why didn't anyone tell me it was Kyouya?!" she asked again through clenched teeth.

"Jiro didn't want you to know," Keiji replied, dusting the wrinkles from his shirt. "Wait a second, I thought you _liked_ him?!"

"Well, yeah, but we got into a fight today at school!" Hitomi blurted, then slapped her hands over her mouth in disbelief at what she'd just spilled, her eyes wide as Keiji stared at her in shock.

"You got into a _fight_ with him?!" he whispered harshly. "When did you even see him?! I thought you didn't _want_ to see him yet?!"

"Mika dragged me into the Host Club," she confessed in a hushed tone.

"But you promised him---"

"I know what I promised!" Hitomi hissed before Keiji could finish.

"Keiji! Hitomi! Our guest has arrived!" Jiro called. "What's taking the two of you so long?!"

"Keiji, help me! I can't lose face!" Hitomi whispered, hurriedly and Keiji sighed, then glanced around the corner just enough to see Kyouya still standing by the door with Jiro and turned back to his sister.

"Ok, here's what we do," he planned. "I'll go down the stairs first, and you watch me, ok? When I get half-way down, _you_ start down the stairs _slowly_. And hold your head up. Pretend like nothing happened, ok?"

"But how can I---?"

"Just trust me. Do what I just said, ok?"

Hitomi nodded and he straightened himself out before heading toward the stairs, then walking down them as she watched him, out of sight from Kyouya and her oldest brother.

"Finally!" Jiro grinned, then frowned and looked around. "Where's Hitomi?"

"She'll be down in a moment," Keiji replied. "You know girls. They _always_ take more time to get ready.

"I thank you both for inviting me," Kyouya smiled charmingly, but coldly. "It's been a long time since I've had dinner with the three of you."

"Well, we're glad to have you," Jiro smiled in return with a nod. "Tell me, how is your father, and your brothers?"

"Oh, they're doing well," Kyouya replied, glancing toward the stairs when he saw some movement. "They've…been…busy…"

He trailed off, staring at the stairs. Jiro and Keiji frowned at him then looked to the stairs as well, and they instantly understood. Hitomi was slowly walking down the steps, her hand delicately placed on the rail. Keiji smirked in amusement at the little touch then looked at Kyouya. The boy's onyx eyes were wide as he still stared at Hitomi even as she walked toward them. She stopped right in front of Kyouya with a smile as he still stared at her.

"Good evening, Kyouya," she smiled, brightly and it took him a moment to recover himself. He blinked a few times but instead of staying speechless, his eyes narrowed to a normal size and he smiled slightly as he reached for one of her hands, lifted it to his face and kissed it, gently.

"Good evening, Hitomi," he murmured, lowering her hand as she stared at him with wide eyes, a blush staining her cheeks. Keiji instantly reached for Hitomi to pull her away from Kyouya, but Jiro gripped his collar and yanked him back to stand between him and the couple.

"Well, dinner should be ready by now," the oldest Sasaki said, drawing everyone's attention. "Shall we head into the dining room?"

"Yes, of course," Kyouya replied with a smile as Hitomi frowned at him, surprise being replaced with confusion. He was being far too charming for someone who was supposed to be angry with her. "Lead the way, Jiro."

Jiro nodded and Keiji, again, tried to take Hitomi's hand but Jiro gripped his younger brother's arm and dragged him next to him, letting Kyouya and Hitomi trail behind them. Kyouya took the liberty of taking Hitomi's hand and wrapping it around his arm as they walked behind her brothers and she stared at him with wide eyes filled with wonder. He only smiled, coldly and leaned next to her ear, making her blush again.

"If it's a game you want," he whispered. "I can oblige you. But don't expect to win easily, if you win at all."

Hitomi swallowed as he leaned out to stand and catch the glare Keiji was sending him over his shoulder. She should have known he would have caught on to her little display she'd performed coming down the stairs. She knew it was a little obvious, but she had to admit, it was worth seeing the look on Kyouya's face. Maybe wearing this dress wasn't such a bad idea after all?

told you there was some comedy! those twins, i swear. anyway, dinner will be served shortly...can't wait to see what will happen then. reivews?

* * *

A/N:


	3. Awkward Dinner

**A/N:** dinner is served. bon apetit.

* * *

_**Chapter 3: Awkward Dinner**_

Silence. _Deafening_ silence. The only sound that could even be heard was the ticking of the grandfather clock in the hall outside the dining room and perhaps, the soft sounds of the silverware on the dishes once in a while. No one made conversation. The only interactions made were slight glances between Hitomi and Keiji, glances from Hitomi to Kyouya and slight looks from Jiro at Hitomi and Kyouya.

It stayed silent for a few more moments before Jiro had enough of waiting for Hitomi to say something to Kyouya or vice-versa, and he cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention.

"So, Kyouya, Hitomi told me you were part of a club," he smiled and Hitomi shot a wide-eyed look of anger at her oldest brother as Keiji nearly choked on his food, making Jiro frown at the two. "She didn't tell me what it was about though. How long has it been open now?"

"Two years," Kyouya replied, ignoring what was going on between the siblings. "It's a Host Club."

"A _successful_ Host Club, I might add," Hitomi suddenly chimed in and all eyes shot to her as she took a bite of her food. "They're one of the most popular clubs in Ouran Academy."

"Is that so?" Jiro smiled as Keiji frowned at Hitomi's tone. "Well, what exactly does this Host Club do for the fine young ladies of Ouran?"

"Why don't I let Hitomi tell you about it?" Kyouya smiled back, looking straight at her with his cold smile as she stared back at him with wide eyes. "She's been there before. In fact, she was there _today_."

Jiro nearly choked on the sip of wine he'd taken from his glass and looked at Hitomi with wide eyes as Keiji glanced at her as well, wondering if he would have to save her.

"Hitomi?" Jiro urged and she looked at him, her eyes still wide. "Well?"

"Well, what?" she wondered, sincerely.

"What is the Host Club like?" he asked and Hitomi translated that as, "We'll talk about you being at the Host Club later."

She swallowed and looked back at Kyouya, hoping that he would save her. Surely he wasn't so _that _cold, right? She got her answer when he only stared back at her, and her anger rose as she continued staring at him, and that anger turned to quick resolve as she took a deep breath and gave a sly smile.

"Well, a _lot_ of the girls at Ouran seem to enjoy it," she finally replied, sitting up a little straighter. "They basically sit around a room for a few hours and tell girls what they want to hear. There _is_ of course profit. I think you two know that Kyouya would _never_ get into _anything_ that didn't have _some_ profit for the members…_himself_ especially."

She had looked him right in the eye when she said that.

"Of course there's profit," Kyouya replied with a sly smile of his own. "But our purpose is to make the girls happy."

"Happy?" Hitomi smiled slightly in return, perking a brow in intrigue. "I'm surprised that word is even in your vocabulary, Kyouya."

"Hitomi!" Jiro scolded and Keiji nearly spit out his sip of water at Hitomi's comment.

"Unless of course, you mean its definition in some cases, including this one, is 'profit'," she continued, ignoring her oldest brother's glare and her older brother's stare of shock at her.

"On the contrary," Kyouya replied, calmly. "I mean it the way I say it."

"Another shocker: You've actually said what you mean," Hitomi shot back, and her brothers stared at her, speechless at her behavior.

"There have been plenty of times where I've said what I mean," Kyouya replied, still calm.

"Oh sure," Hitomi nodded skeptically, taking a sip of water then continuing, "I'm sure I can count the number of times on one hand."

"You're not going to make me angry, Hitomi," he reported.

"Of course not," she shrugged. "How can one make a person that is devoid of feeling, upset at all, let alone angry?"

"Hitomi! That is enough!" Jiro snapped. "What is the matter with you?!"

Hitomi stood from her chair, not looking at anyone at the table and muttered, "I've lost my appetite. I'll be in the sitting room."

"Hitomi, you've barely touched your food," Keiji said, gently as she walked toward the door.

"Not only that, but it's _rude_ to leave the table in the middle of dinner when we have a guest!" Jiro shot after her as she still walked away and Keiji glared at his brother. Hitomi only kept walking as a servant opened the door for her and she walked out of the room, taking a turn down the hall. Jiro sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Kyouya," he groaned.

"_I'm_ not," Keiji muttered into his glass of water as he took a sip and Jiro glared at him but quickly turned back to Kyouya.

"She's been in a weird mood since she got home from school," Jiro explained.

"It's quite alright, Jiro," Kyouya assured him and the three were silent for a moment until Jiro perked up a bit with a thought.

"Kyouya," he called, drawing the boy's attention. "Would you mind talking to her? Maybe if she talked to someone other than us, she might be a little more…open about things."

Keiji nearly choked on his water and stared at Jiro with wide eyes as he coughed, "Jiro---!" Cough. "Don't impose on the poor boy like that. Let him eat his dinner."

"No, it's quite alright, Keiji," Kyouya replied, wiping his mouth with his napkin then standing. "I'll see if she'll allow me to sit with her awhile."

"Thank you, Kyouya," Jiro smiled as the boy headed to the door, his hands in his pockets and after the door shut, Keiji shot a glare at his brother as he took a drink of wine. Jiro caught his brother's gaze and turned to him questioningly.

"What?" he wondered.

"'What'?!" Keiji hissed back. "What do you mean, 'What?'! Did you completely _miss_ what just happened?!"

Jiro shrugged, taking another sip of wine then said, "Lover's quarrel. Nothing more."

"Love?!" Keiji retorted. "Hitomi was right, that kid doesn't know _love_! He only sees her as a way to get our clinic! It's all _business_ to him!"

"Maybe," Jiro shrugged again, starting at his food again. "But as far as I see it, if he didn't feel anything for her, he wouldn't have tolerated her speaking to him like that, and he wouldn't have gone after her either."

Keiji glanced at his older brother and sighed with a set jaw, gritting his teeth in irritation at the whole situation then shook his head and muttered, "I hope you're right."

* * *

Kyouya strolled down the hall, knowing where the sitting room was, his hands in his pockets. He knew she wouldn't want to see him, but after seeing her at the Host Club and the little 'discussion' they'd just had at the dinner table, he was even _more_ intrigued by her. He'd spent plenty of time with her before, but she'd never been this…interesting.

He'd seen her almost like a female version of Tamaki, which really didn't appeal to him. The _last_ thing he needed was a wife that was just like his best friend. But after her little outburst in the Host Club, and her witty comments she'd given him at dinner, she was showing a different side of her that he'd never even been _hinted_ at. He wondered what else she had in store for him. He wanted to know what he was getting into _before_ the marriage.

Finally coming to a stop in front of one of the doors in the hall he peeked inside and saw a couch in front of a TV which was propped on the wall above a fireplace. He heard small shudders and sniffles and sighed, realizing it was Hitomi who he saw sitting on the couch. He stepped into the room, silently so she wouldn't notice him until he was right next to her.

"Stupid," she shuddered, making him stop, standing directly behind the couch; directly behind _her_. "Stupid, idiot…stupid!" She pounded a fist onto the couch cushion next to the one she was sitting on. "You _know_ he's doing an _amazing_ job with the Host Club! And you know the Host Club itself is great! Why would you be such a bitch?! Why would you say all those horrible things to him if you---?!"

She cut herself off and sighed, leaning forward and holding her head in her hands to give a few more silent sobs. Instead of revealing his presence, Kyouya walked around the couch and sat next to her, silently. To his surprise, Hitomi didn't even look up to see who it was before she scooted closer and leaned on his shoulder, still staring ahead.

"Why am I an idiot, Keiji?" she shuddered, assuming who it was. "Why did I say all those things? Why would I be so horrible to him like that? This is so out of character for me."

"I'll say," Kyouya finally said and she gasped, shooting her head from his shoulder to stare watery blue eyes at him, dry tears on her cheeks.

"Kyouya?!" she breathed in utter shock. "I…I thought you were…"

"I know," he replied when she trailed off and she scooted away from him a bit.

"Why didn't you tell me it was you?!" she demanded.

"I was enjoying your indirect apology," he smirked. "I accept it, by the way."

Hitomi glared at him with a set jaw then asked through clenched teeth, "Why are you here?"

"Jiro asked me to talk to you," he shrugged, leaning back on the couch.

"And you actually _came_?" she retorted. "What's the merit in you talking to me?"

Kyouya lifted a brow in amusement and she sighed at herself, clapping a hand over her mouth because she was unbelieving of what she'd said.

"I'm…sorry," she muttered, lowering her hand and shaking her head. "I have no idea what's gotten into me."

"I noticed," he smirked and they sat in silence for a moment before she looked up at him.

"Why _did_ you come here, though?" she finally wondered.

"I told you," he replied. "Your brother asked me."

"That's it?" she asked. "You didn't have any _other_ reason?"

"I have a feeling my answer will make you give me another out of character remark," he replied, leaning on the arm on the couch.

"Oh, does it have something to do with merit, or profit, or something like that?" Hitomi shot back, then growled at herself and planted the heel of her hand to her forehead. "Dammit! It's like I can't control my mouth!"

"It looks like you lose your tact in my presence," Kyouya noticed and she stared at him in wonder. "I wonder when that happened."

"I-It must have been, after the Host Club," she guessed, that being the last time she remembered having an outburst in front of him. "I-I don't know why, though."

"Why don't we talk about that?" Kyouya suggested, shifting to face her and she frowned at him in wonder. "What exactly did you want to accomplish by going to the Host Club today?"

Hitomi's eyes shot wide again as she replied, "I already told you. Mika dragged me there, and I wanted to see you."

"But, I was coming here for dinner, so you saw me anyway," he shrugged.

"But I didn't _know_ you were coming for dinner!" Hitomi replied. "Jiro told me we were having a guest, but he refused to tell me who it was! He didn't tell me about it until I came home!"

"I see," Kyouya smiled and looked up at her. "Then the question remains; _why_ did you wish to see me?"

Hitomi looked up at him with wide eyes and opened her mouth to answer, but quickly shut it, afraid of what might come out, but Kyouya only lifted a brow and smirked in amusement.

"Refraining from speaking at all now, are you?" he wondered but Hitomi only glared back at him and set her jaw. "Believe me, if I had a problem with the way you spoke to me I would have said something at the dinner table, or even at the Host Club when you yelled at me the way you did."

She blinked a few times in surprise then gently chewing on her lower-lip in thought. She could see him getting angry if he, in fact, _did_ have a problem with the way she spoke to him. But what she couldn't wrap her head around was _why_ he wasn't upset with her.

"Well, Hitomi?" Kyouya urged, jolting her from her thoughts. "Why did you wish to see me?"

"I---" she choked, then swallowed, still staring at him, and now blushing slightly. "I simply…" She trailed off for a moment, trying to think of something to say, but she couldn't. She couldn't even think of the true reason she had wanted to see him.

"A girlish whim, I suppose?" Kyouya guessed when she couldn't finish "Curiosity? In any case, I believe we spoke about you attending the Host Club." He shot a cold look at her from his dark, onyx eyes. "It wouldn't be appropriate to have you attending a Host Club when we are engaged, especially a Host Club _I_ am apart of."

Hitomi nodded mutely, casting her eyes down into her lap as she twiddling her fingers. She suddenly perked up with an idea but kept her eyes cast down as she meekly asked, "What if I designated _you_ as my host?"

Kyouya snapped a wide-eyed gaze of shock at her, but she only kept her eyes in her lap. Had she really just asked him that?! He quickly collected himself and leaned his chin on his hand, staring ahead.

"That would be even _worse_," he replied and that made Hitomi shoot her gaze to him. "You would only be a distraction. If anyone found out we were engaged, the girls would be angry, and the quota on my customers, maybe even _all_ the club members, would be reduced until we were to dissolve the club."

"What if I promised not to tell anyone?" Hitomi wondered in a tone that came out a bit more desperate than she intended. "What if I promised not to be a distraction? I understand what being a host means, and that you can't spend too much time with me alone. I could even sit in a corner and study in a corner if you wish!"

"No," Kyouya sighed. "I couldn't ask you to do that. If you were to attend the Host Club you would be a customer, not a wall flower. But, that doesn't matter, because you're not going to come back."

"Kyouya, please?" Hitomi nearly begged. "I won't make trouble for you of the other members."

"Why your sudden change of heart?" he wondered, looking at her again. "I thought you didn't want to have anything to do with the Host Club?"

"The Host Club, perhaps, but not _you_," she replied and his eyes widened slightly at that. She slapped a hand over her mouth and looked away from his gaze. She had done it again! She had spoken without _thinking_! What had gotten into her?! She lowered her hand and sputtered, "I-I mean…I only want to see you a little more. I know I said we shouldn't until we were ready to start courting, but…we _do_ go to the same school, so it's not as though we're _really_ courting. There are other people there, and because of your position as a host we won't be able to sneak away without anyone being noticed, if you even wanted to…"

"Hitomi."

"Yes?"

"You're rambling," he smirked and she swallowed as she looked up at him.

"A-Am I?" she breathed. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright," he replied, glancing at his watch and she noticed it.

"Am I keeping you from something?" she wondered with only a slight bite to her tone which Kyouya didn't fail to notice, and it made him smirk a little more.

"No," he answered. "I was only curious to see how long you'd rambled on for."

"Are you _trying_ to make me say something awful to you again?" she snapped.

"Perhaps," Kyouya smirked. "To tell you the truth, I rather like seeing that side of you."

Hitomi's eyes widened in surprise and she breathed, "R-Really?"

"Yes," he hummed. "When I first met you, it seemed too good to be true that one girl could be so bubbly and full of life. You never really showed me anything other than that side of you. It was getting to be annoying."

"If _that_ why you seemed so unhappy when we were together?" she wondered in awe, fitting the pieces together in her mind.

"Partially," he confirmed then grumbled, "You reminded me of Tamaki a little too much."

Hitomi snickered and smiled, "Really?"

"I wouldn't take that as a compliment," he warned.

"I thought you liked him," she recalled with a slight frown.

"I do, but I don't need a wife who acts like _him_," he replied, sharply and Hitomi nodded in understanding.

The two were silent for a moment as Kyouya stared ahead and Hitomi stared at her lap, twiddling her fingers. He looked as though he was in deep thought, and she didn't want to disturb him. She knew he had a lot on his mind pretty much all the time.

"Perhaps…" he suddenly broke in, causing her to shoot a wide-eyed gaze at him in wonder. "Perhaps it wouldn't be _entirely_ horrible to have you attend the Host Club as one of _my_ customers?"

Hitomi gave a wide smile, lighting her face and she sat forward a bit, but when he turned to her she quickly shrunk back and lowered her grin to a small smile as she cast her eyes down again.

"However, there _will be_ some conditions," he continued.

"Yes, I know," she nodded, glancing up at him.

"You will not stay later than any of the other customers," he listed, and she only nodded. "You will not be given special treatment by me, or any of the other club members. You will not designate any other host except me, and if you become a distraction, I'll ask you to leave. I don't want an argument from you about that either, am I understood?"

"Yes, Kyouya," she nodded quickly, still staring down at her lap but her smile growing with every word he spoke.

"And one more thing," he resumed and suddenly shifted toward her, but she didn't look up at him as her eyes widened in wonder. He sat directly next to her and placed a hand under her chin to lift her face up so their gazes locked and he saw the slight blush that came to her cheeks. "I want you to set your brothers straight about the Host Club, since I now know you think so highly of it. Will that be a problem?"

Hitomi only shook her head, not daring to speak out of fear her reply would come out in a whimper or even a moan. Kyouya nodded and lowered his hand from her chin but neither one of them moved. She swallowed, audibly and he gave a split-second frown but said nothing.

"I-Is that all?" Hitomi chanced to ask and it took Kyouya a moment to reply.

"Yes," he finally answered and she nodded, but their eyes were still locked. She suddenly realized she was frozen, and couldn't move away, try as she might.

Her heart started pounding when he leaned a little closer to her and she closed her eyes, but all she felt was his face next to hers as he whispered into her ear, "You understand why I want you to clear the Host Club's name with your brothers, don't you? It's because we all care about it. The members of the Host Club, especially Tamaki and Haruhi, we all enjoy being there. It's our refuge from the troubles we face. We're accepted there, and we strive to make sure that everyone is accepted as well. That's why I've decided you can come now, because I want to uphold our reputation. Be honored, Hitomi."

"I am," she breathed back, and he had to fight the shiver threatening to run up his spine from her breath fanning his neck. "Thank you, Kyouya. I'm deeply honored to be accepted to attend the Host Club by your will."

He swallowed, silently and pulled away to adjust his glasses. What was wrong with him, he wondered? He'd never felt uneasy like this with a girl. He felt he was going to lose it at any moment if he stayed here with her for too long. With that thought, he stood from the couch as she stared up at him in wonder.

"I should be going now," he said, turning to walk away. "I'll see you tomorrow, I suppose."

"Wait, Kyouya!" Hitomi called just as he was rounding the couch. She shot to her feet as he stopped and turned to look at her, shoving his hands into his pockets as she stood in front of him and smiled, "Thank you for coming in here and talking to me. You really didn't have to, but I'm very glad you did."

"You're welcome," he smiled charmingly, though he felt his hands shaking in his pockets. He had to get away from her.

"And I'm sorry for being so rude," she continued. "I know I already apologized for it, but I felt I should do so again."

"I told you, it didn't upset me," he assured her. "But I accept your apology."

"Thank you for coming to dinner, Kyouya," she smiled, and he wanted to just tell her to stop thanking and apologizing to him and let him go. He was losing his signature cool rapidly, he could tell.

"I'll thank your brother for inviting me," he replied, instead.

"I can walk you to the door, if you'd like," Hitomi offered, still smiling.

"No," he replied quickly. "No thank you. I'll just let myself out."

"But I wouldn't be a very good hostess if I didn't walk you to the door," she smiled widely, slipping her arm through his and pulling him toward the doorway and into the hall. "Besides, it'll make my brother feel better to see us getting along now, don't you think?"

"Yes," he replied, slowly. "After the little spat we had at the table, I'm sure it would."

The two made their way down the hall and back into the dining room to find Jiro and Keiji still there, now at an empty table talking to each other. When Jiro caught sight of the couple entering he smiled widely and Keiji started at them in shock.

"Good, you too made up," Jiro nodded. "That's very good. I suspect you apologized to him for your rudeness, Hitomi?"

"Twice," Kyouya confirmed, not failing to notice that Hitomi had yet to let go of his arm. "I'm sorry, Jiro, but I should be getting home now."

"Of course," Jiro said and Keiji shot to his feet as Jiro rose from his chair as well. "It's getting a bit late, isn't it? We'll walk you to the door."

Jiro and Keiji led the way out of the room toward the front door as Kyouya and Hitomi trailed behind. Kyouya glanced at the girl a few times, hoping she would let go of his arm, and when she didn't, he _prayed_ she would. When they finally reached the front door, she detached herself from him and stood next to Keiji who wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him.

"Thank you for the wonderful meal," Kyouya said, bowing and the three siblings bowed in return. "I hope to invite the three of _you_ to dinner sometime soon."

"That would be wonderful," Jiro smiled. "Please, say hello to your family for the three of us?"

"Of course," Kyouya nodded, smiling charmingly. "Good night."

"Good night!" Hitomi smiled, cutely as he turned to head for the car waiting for him and her brother's looked at her with amused frowns over their brows. She looked up at them in wonder, glancing between them then shrugged, "What?"

"What was _that_ about?" Jiro wondered, shutting the front door.

"What was _what_ about?" Hitomi asked again with a frown of her own.

"'Good night!'" Keiji imitated her cute tone with a dramatic wave for emphasis as he let his arm fall from her shoulders and Hitomi glared at him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she lied, turning her nose up and starting toward the stairs to go to her room but her brothers quickly followed.

"Oh, Kyouya," Jiro mimicked a high, girlish voice as the three continued walking. "Your eyes are so dreamy! Your arms are so strong! Take me into those arms and hold me! Let me be lost in your eyes!"

"Shut up, you dork," Hitomi muttered, a slight blush coming to her cheeks as she shoved her brother away by the face with her hand.

"Did he sweet talk you like he does the other girls in the Host Club?" Keiji teased, although he was a bit serious at the same time. This made Hitomi stop as they were headed up the stairs and the boys stopped a step behind her as she turned to them with a serious face.

"I have to set you guys straight on the Host Club," she began.

* * *

Kyouya scrambled into the car and nearly slammed the door shut.

"Home," he gasped, holding a hand to his chest as he breathed heavily.

"Are you alright, Young Master?" the driver asked, concerned.

"I'm alright, just drive," he ordered and the car started rolling out of the Sasaki driveway.

He couldn't understand it. What was wrong with him? His heart was pounding as if he'd just run a marathon. His knees were shaking a bit, and his palms were a little clammy. What in the world was happening to him?!

_No_, he denied himself silently, almost immediately coming to a conclusion. _It's all business. Nothing more. __Business__. If emotion is involved it becomes personal. You __cannot__ allow that to happen, Kyouya Ootori, do you understand me? You __cannot let it happen__! It'll cloud your brain if you let it get personal. Then you'll __really__ be distracted._

He clenched his fists at his sides, willing his reactions to Hitomi away.

_It's all business. Not personal. Business._

_

* * *

_

**A/N:** wow. long. well, now, isn't this an interesting development? hee hee hee. and wow, Hitomi's got a bite to her. (believe me, i didn't see that coming either) ow, my hand has a cramp from typing so much. did i warm Kyouya up a little bit? reviews?


	4. Welcoming a New Princess

**A/N:** now, let's see how this goes. lol enjoy the next chappie!

* * *

_**Chapter 4: Welcoming a New Princess**_

"Are you serious?!" Mika grinned widely as she and Hitomi walked down the halls of Ouran, after school. "You're coming to the Host Club with me?!"

"Yes, Mika," Hitomi smiled. "But please, don't make a big deal out of this."

"Oh, Tamaki will be so _happy_ to have another customer!" Mika giggled, giddily.

"Well, actually---"

"Come on!" Mika interrupted, grabbing Hitomi's hand and shooting down the hall. "We're almost there! We don't want to be late!"

"But, Mika---!" Hitomi was unable to finish her sentence because Mika had stopped them in front of the Host Club doors, and they were the only girls there. They looked around with confused frowns over their brows then looked back at each other.

"Are you the first ones here?" Hitomi wondered and Mika shrugged.

"I suppose so," she replied then grinned and took one handle on one of the doors. "Let's open the doors!"

"Maybe we should wait---?"

"No way!" Mika cut in. "No one else would!"

Hitomi sighed and gripped the handle on the other door, muttering, "Well, you've got a point there."

Mika's grin grew as they pushed the doors open and were, once again, met with a chorus of, "Welcome!"

They peeked inside to see the Host Club, all wearing cowboy western clothing, some of the hosts with feathers in their hair and hats, all with holsters and fake guns in them, and one of the hosts had slung a rifle over his shoulder.

Opening the door, they found the Wild West.

"Well, it seems you're the first ones here, little ladies," Tamaki smiled, spinning a fake revolver on his finger then catching the handle and aiming it at the girls. "I never miss when I aim for the heart of a lady."

"You're so _right_, Tamaki!" Mika giggled, blushing a bit as she ran toward him and he slung his arm over her shoulder. "I'm sure Hitomi would agree, because she's now attending the Host Club as a regular customer of yours!"

"Is that so?" Tamaki smiled up at Hitomi who blushed only slightly. "Well, that's just wonderful---"

"Actually, I've come to designate Kyouya," Hitomi said, quickly and Tamaki's jaw dropped in disbelief as his eyes widened. "I'm sorry, Tamaki, but I have to say, you were rather wonderful yesterday. Excuse me."

Hitomi hurriedly walked toward Kyouya as Tamaki only stood in shock and Mika attempted to rouse him from it by waving a hand in front of his face but it did no good. Hitomi stood in front of Kyouya as he wrote something into a notebook then turned to her, adjusting his glasses.

"Why don't we have a seat?" he smiled, and she knew he was putting on his show as if she were a customer. She only nodded with a smile and she took a seat on one of the other couches, Kyouya sitting next to her. "Would you like some tea and cake?"

"No, thank you, Kyouya," she smiled, slightly. She couldn't believe how giddy she was! Her heart was racing, and she could hear it in her ears, feel it in her palms. Why was she so nervous?! She noticed other girls start to hurry into the room to spend time with their hosts, and was glad when most of them flocked toward Tamaki and left herself with Kyouya.

"So, Kyouya," she began, deciding to start conversation. "Whose idea was it for the theme today?"

"Tamaki's, of course," he replied with a small smile. "He's always bringing in Western themes. The girls seem to like it."

"Yes, they do," Hitomi agreed, noticing some of the girls getting giddy over Tamaki's 'expert gunmanship.' All he was really doing was spinning the plastic pistols on his fingers and shoving them into the holsters on his hips, then yanking them out. She couldn't help but think he was a show-off.

"You talked to your brothers and set them straight, yes?" Kyouya asked, bluntly and she blinked in surprise at it.

"Y-Yes, I did," she nodded. "They had a feeling I was being a bit harsh with my description."

"Good," Kyouya nodded.

"Kyouya!"

The two turned to see a few more girls heading toward them, and Hitomi had to fight the urge to sigh in disappointment.

"We're so sorry we're late!" one of the girls said as Kyouya stood to speak to them.

"Not at all," he replied, smoothly. "You're right on time. Please, have a seat, ladies."

"Oh, you have a new customer, Kyouya?!" one of the girls grinned, as the group took seats around Hitomi and she glanced around in panic.

"Yes," Kyouya smiled. "Her name is Hitomi Sasaki."

"I can see why you were named 'Hitomi'!" one of the girls grinned, leaning toward her to stare her in the eye. "Your eyes are so beautiful!"

"Th-Thank you," she sputtered with a slight blush.

"Would you ladies like something to eat and drink?" Kyouya offered, drawing the girls' attentions back to him.

"Oh, yes!" one of the girls grinned. "Thank you so much, Kyouya!"

He nodded and went to get the girls some food and drink and the girls whipped their attention back to Hitomi.

"So, Hitomi," one of the girls began. "Why did you decide to designate Kyouya? I saw you yesterday with Tamaki. Do you have the Host Hopping Sickness?"

"The…what?" Hitomi frowned with a crooked lip then quickly replied, "No. I'm sticking with Kyouya."

"Really?" one of the other girls wondered in an intrigued tone. "Why did you switch from Tamaki? Usually the girls that go to him _stay_ with him because he's so charming."

"I can see that," Hitomi agreed. "But, I chose Kyouya after all because…" She trailed off in thought, not wanting to give away the fact that they were engaged and truly not knowing what to tell these girls. "Because, I like very intelligent and cool guys, and he's certainly both those things, I find."

"Oh, he _is_!" one of the girls giggled giddily. "He's so dreamy when he's sharing information about different things with us!"

The other girls nodded with cute, affirmative noises and Hitomi smiled in relief.

"Here you are, girls," Kyouya smiled, charmingly as he set down a tray with sandwiches and tea.

"Kyouya, your outfits look so authentic!" one of the girls smiled, taking a cup of tea from the tray. "Were they hard to find?"

"Not especially," Kyouya replied, still standing and tilting his blue cowboy hat back a bit on his head. "The outfits were made by the Hitachiin twins' mother, but the fake pistols and the belts to hold them were a bit of a bother getting onto school grounds. However, it was worth it to make you girls happy."

"Oh, Kyouya, you're so thoughtful!" one girl breathed as he smiled at her and Hitomi glanced around at the girls fawning over him with a prick of jealousy.

"Incidentally, there are some catalogs here filled pictures of the Host Club in the costumes we've worn this week," Kyouya pitched, with a charming smile. "Perhaps you ladies would like to relive your wonderful memories of this week by purchasing them?"

"Oh, yes, please!" the girls grinned, their eyes all alight. "Thank you, Kyouya!"

Hitomi felt her heart drop. For a moment, she thought his purpose in the Host Club was to profit _emotionally_ from the girls' happiness, but he was just using his position to get a _monetary_ profit from them. She understood, of course, that a club would _have_ to make money in order to provide food and drink and costumes to try out new themes, she had just hoped that it hadn't been Kyouya pitching the sales to the girls.

"You're not going to buy a catalog, Hitomi?"

She shot her gaze up to the girl who had asked her the question, and once she registered it she shook her head in response, saying, "No. It wouldn't do me as much good. This is only my second day here. I haven't seen what other themes the Host Club tried out this week."

"All the more reason for you to have one!" one of the girls grinned as Kyouya glanced between the two girls. The girl speaking to Hitomi turned to Kyouya and smiled, "I'll buy a catalog for her. Put me down for two."

"No!" Hitomi cried, quickly when Kyouya was about to write it down in his notebook. "I couldn't ask you to do that! I may not even _look_ at it, I'm so busy, you see."

"It's alright," the girl smiled, waving it off and Kyouya made the change in his notebook anyway. "You may want a break from a busy day. Every girl needs eye candy once in a while."

The other girls nodded and giggled and Hitomi only gave a small sigh as she looked up at Kyouya. He glanced around at the girls and gave an ever-so-slight smile to reassure her and she couldn't help but stare at him in awe and disbelief. So, he _did_ care!

* * *

"Wow! We're the last ones here!" Mika grinned, looking around the almost empty music room the Host Club, Hitomi and herself were still in.

"Maybe we should leave now?" Hitomi guessed, sitting next to her friend on one of the sofas.

"Host Club hours aren't _officially_ over for the day yet," Mika smiled, widely. "We've got some time."

"Hitomi?"

The girls spun around to see Kyouya standing behind them and they watched him as he walked around the couch to stand in front of them, holding something in his hand.

"Here you are," he smiled, handing her the catalog in his hands and she looked down at it. "The girl who purchased it for you has already left, as you know. You can thank her tomorrow for it, if you'd like?"

"Th-Thank you," Hitomi sputtered, taking the catalog from his hands. "She really didn't have to do that."

"That particular girl has always been very generous," Kyouya replied as Mika watched her friend intently. A blush was working its way across Hitomi's cheeks as she stared down at the cover of the magazine now in her lap. "It may happen again. She seems to like you."

Hitomi only nodded and Kyouya stared at her for a moment, which Mika didn't fail to notice, before he walked away to go into an inner-room and change into his uniform. Mika watched him walk away until he was out of sight and out of ear-shot then turned to Hitomi.

"What's with you and Kyouya?" she asked, bluntly and Hitomi jumped out of her skin at the question then looked up at Mika with blushing cheeks.

"W-What?!" she sputtered out. "N-Nothing?! What makes you think there's something between Kyouya and I?!"

"The way he just stared at you right now," Mika shrugged. "And also, you've been acting funny around him. Really, Hitomi, what's going on with you two?" She suddenly had a thought and grinned widely and Hitomi feared the worst. "Are the two of you in a secret relationship?!"

It was the worst.

"N-No," Hitomi lied, but not very well and Mika narrowed her eyes in playful suspicion at her friend.

"You're not a good liar," she teased. "You stutter when you lie."

"Mika, I'm not allowed to talk about it," Hitomi replied.

"So it _is_ a secret relationship!" Mika grinned with a nod. "How exciting!"

"Mika---!"

"Oh, don't worry," she smirked, waving it off. "You can trust me! I won't tell a soul, I swear it."

"But, Mika---"

"What are you girls still doing here?" the girls heard in stereo around them and they jumped as they looked away from each other to see one Hitachiin twin on each of their shoulders. "The Club is closed, you know?"

"No it isn't!" Mika protested and looked at her watch. "We still have at _least_ a half hour left!"

"Mika, let's just go," Hitomi whispered, taking the other girl's wrist to stand and lead her to the door.

"No!" Mika snapped, yanking her wrist away and almost hitting the twin next to her in the process, but he was too quick and stepped away before she hit him. "I _always_ stay here until the _very last_ minute." She noticed Tamaki strolling toward them and grinned at him. "Don't I, Tamaki?"

"Yes, Princess, you do," he smiled charmingly, shoving the twin next to her out of the way to sit next to Mika. "But my darling," he began, pulling in close to her and using a hand to tilt her chin up to his gaze. "If your friend is waiting on _you_, you do not have to stay so late. I'll just have to cope until you return tomorrow."

"But how _could_ you cope in my absence?!" Mika gasped and Hitomi couldn't help but roll her eyes at the scene as Tamaki only smiled, charmingly.

"One kiss from you, my Princess, would last me for an eternity," he murmured. "I would wait for you forever."

"Oh, Tamaki! You're so wonderful!" Mika cheered, unable to contain her giddiness. Hitomi sighed in exasperation at her friend but when she felt the couch sink on the other side of her, she shot her gaze up to see Kyouya reclining back against the couch scribbling in a notebook. She glanced at her friend, still fawning over Tamaki and moved to stand but was stopped by Kyouya's voice.

"Don't feel you have to leave on _my_ account," he said, not looking at her and Hitomi looked at him with wide eyes. "It's true, Miss Takahashi stays here late, and if you wish to go, then go. But don't feel you _have_ to just because of me."

Hitomi blinked at him a few times in surprise but when he still didn't look up at her, she leaned back against the couch again. She swallowed silently and took a chance by scooting a little closer to him. She gave him sideways look to see if he moved or looked at her, and when he didn't she took that as a good sign and scooted a little closer. Her hands went to her lap, twiddling her thumbs as she glanced at him again.

Still, he didn't move or look up. She scooted a little closer, her heart pounding in her ears because now she was close enough to lean against him if she wanted to, but she didn't dare. She glanced at him still writing in his notebook then bit the corner of her lip in thought. She wasn't sure what to do. They were almost completely alone, except for the Host Club and her friend next to her, but Mika was occupied with Tamaki.

Kyouya suddenly closed his notebook, making her jump and look at him with wide eyes filled with wonder at what he was going to do next and he only looked up at her and smiled, saying, "Am I _that_ intimidating?"

It took a moment for Hitomi to register his words because she was suddenly how realizing how close they truly were, then shook her head clear and cast her eyes down at her lap, sputtering, "N-No. I just…I guess I don't know how to talk to you anymore."

"You had no problems last night, at dinner," Kyouya murmured low, not wanting Mika to hear if she was paying any attention, though he doubted it if _Tamaki_ was on the job.

"I know, but this is different," Hitomi murmured back, just as low. "We're here at the Host Club. I can't be _too_ familiar with you."

"The girls are gone now," Kyouya assured her.

"And the club members?" she reminded him. "What about them? They're still here."

Kyouya glanced around, making her do the same. It was true, they were all there, but they were all occupied with something. The Hitachiin twins were talking to Haruhi, Honey and Mori were at a table having cake and reading, and Tamaki was with Mika. No one was paying attention to them. But still, she kind of wished they were _completely_ alone.

"Did you have a good day today, Hitomi?" Kyouya suddenly asked, making her jump and look at him with wide eyes. He smiled at her and she swallowed, feeling a blush come to her cheeks at his smile.

"Y-Yes," she replied, meekly.

"You don't have too much work, I hope," he asked and she shook her head.

"I try to work ahead a little when I study," she replied and he nodded.

"What's been your favorite subject?" he wondered.

"Geography," she replied. "Kyouya?"

"Yes?"

"Why are you asking me this?"

"To get you to relax," he replied. "You've been tense since you walked in the door."

"That's because I'm nervous," Hitomi explained. "I was nervous when I walked in because we were the first ones here, and I was nervous when those girls started talking to me because I was afraid they were going to jump me or something!"

Kyouya let out a slight chuckle at that and shook his head, shifting to face her completely and touching her hands in her lap, gently, making her jump with a start as he murmured, "The girls are jealous, but none of _my_ customers are _that_ jealous."

"H-How can you know that?" she wondered, her blush deepening.

"I'm a good judge of character, Hitomi," he smirked. "You know that."

She swallowed at his closeness as her eyes scanned over his face, unable to help themselves when they settled on his mouth but she looked away, quickly and muttered, "Yes, I suppose I do."

She looked back at him and notice something catch his attention behind her as he leaned away from her and she shot her gaze up to see Mika standing next to her, Kyouya's hand pulling away from hers as if burned, but she kept her gaze on Mika.

"_Now_ we can go," she grinned with a definite nod and Hitomi nodded as her friend turned to head out the door. She stood and Kyouya followed as she started to go after her friend, but she stopped and turned to Kyouya, eyes cast down as she stepped a little closer to him when he stopped.

"I…" she tried, then cleared her throat, playing with the corner of her catalog. "I had a wonderful time, Kyouya."

"I'm glad, Princess," he smiled with a nod and Hitomi smiled in return at him calling her that. Still fiddling with the catalog in her hands, she glanced at him and he waited, patiently but when she didn't move or say anything more he asked, "Was there something else you needed?"

"N-No," she sputtered and he gave a slight frown because she still didn't walk away or say anything more. It was as if she wanted to stay but knew she had to leave.

She glanced up at him again and quickly stepped closer, lifted her heels from the ground to reach and kissed his cheek then shot to the door before he could see the blush covering her face. Kyouya stared wide eyes after her, blinking only a few times as the door shut after her and he shut his mouth which had been hanging open in shock from her action.

_Now why did she do __that__?_ he wondered, but when he brought a hand to his chin to think, it was shaking. He frowned deeper and wondered, _And why do __I__ feel a bit shaky because of it?_

_You know why, you idiot!_ a part of him shouted but he shook his head, refusing to go down that path. When it came to her, it was just _business_.

Adjusting his glasses and clearing his throat he turned to the couch he'd been sitting on to get his notebook he'd left on the table only to find the rest of the Host Club leaning on said couch and staring at him, some wide-eyed in shock, a few with grins on their faces.

"Yes?" Kyouya asked, impatiently. "Is there something you bunch needed?"

"Kyouya," Tamaki breathed, being one of the wide-eyed staring ones. "That girl…Hitomi…she _kissed_ you!"

"Your point?" Kyouya wondered, stepping toward the couch for his notebook.

"She's only been here a couple of days," the twins pointed out, being two that were grinning. "She get attached that quickly?"

"Apparently," Kyouya shrugged, trying to drop the subject with his cool demeanor.

"You like her too, don't you Kyo-chan?!" Honey grinned, hugging his stuffed bunny close and Kyouya looked at his senior with slightly widened eyes, but quickly masked his surprise over with his signature cool.

"Of course I do," he replied. "But as a customer. One more customer who is that much more interested in the Host Club will boost our profits."

"That's kind of cold," Haruhi noticed as he sat on the couch again and opened his notebook.

"Haruhi, this is the Shadow King you're talking to," Hikaru pointed out, leaning an arm on her shoulder.

"Of course it was cold," Kaoru finished, mirroring his twin on her other shoulder.

"But that's cold, even for _you_, Kyouya-senpai," Haruhi pointed out, ignoring the twins. Kyouya didn't look up at his classmates and only started writing in the notebook again.

They all gave up on trying to get anything out of him and walked away to head home for the day, except Tamaki. The blonde boy walked around the couch and sat next to his friend who was seemingly ignoring him.

"There's more to it than what we've seen, isn't there, Kyouya?" he asked, and the other boy faltered in his writing but quickly continued.

"Not at all," he lied, flatly. "What would make you think that?"

"You were shaking," Tamaki smirked and Kyouya stopped writing all together too look at the King with wide eyes staring through his glasses. How could he have noticed it?! This guy was oblivious, and even though he could be bright at some times, he couldn't even figure out that he liked Haruhi, which everyone _else_ had a long time ago.

"No…I wasn't," Kyouya lied again, trying to collect himself.

"Liar, liar, pants on fire," Tamaki grinned in a sing-song voice, waving a scolding finger at his friend. "I saw you! You were shaking! I think this girl is special to you, isn't she?"

"Of course she's not," Kyouya replied, trying to convince not only Tamaki but _himself_ as well. "She's only a customer of the Host Club. That's all."

"It's alright, Kyouya," Tamaki insisted. "No one's around. You can tell me the truth. I'm you friend! Hey, want me to help you win her over even more?!"

"Just drop it, Tamaki!" Kyouya snapped, making his friend jump back a bit in shock. "I told you, she's no one special! It's just _business_, that's all, got it?! Just _business_!"

He didn't wait for a reply before he shut his notebook and stood to walk toward his bag, shove the book into it and march toward the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he said before heading out, and didn't wait for a response.

He couldn't believe he'd just done that. It wasn't like him to have a sudden outburst like that with Tamaki unless it was _about_ Tamaki. What was getting into him?! Was Hitomi getting under his skin? Possibly, he'd been seeing her a lot more. Maybe she was more annoying than he realized.

"No," he sighed, almost disappointed. "If I can handle Tamaki I can handle _her_, and she's not even as _bad_ as he is."

He thought long and hard about what it could be that was making him act this way. He refused to go back to the fact that he might actually be falling for Hitomi, but the more he thought about it, that same theory kept popping up, and even though he would shove it aside, it was still there. Another thought suddenly came to mind when he came back to it but shoved it away.

_Why am I afraid it's true?_ he wondered. _Why am I so afraid of falling for her?_

* * *

**A/N:** alright, you adorable fans, you. i have a mission for you. if i EVER go OOC with any of the characters and don't acknowledge it you HAVE to tell me! especially with Kyouya. I'm so worried about him. anyways...well, i know Kyouya probably would have figured it out already, he's just struggled with himself, because who doesn't love that inner conflict? lol! reviews?


	5. Setting Up a Date

**A/N:** next chappie! enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 5: Setting Up a Date**_

Hitomi skipped to the front door from the car, humming the whole way. She swung from side to side when she reached the door and went to open it but it opened on its own, making her jump with a wide-eyed gasp of fright. Her brother, Keiji stood in the doorway, frowning at her but smirking at the same time.

"Keiji! You startled me!" Hitomi gasped, placing a hand over her heart. "What are you doing home so early?"

"It was Jiro's turn to stay in late," he shrugged, moving out of the doorway so Hitomi could pass him. "What were you skipping for?"

"How'd you know I was skipping?!" Hitomi wondered as he walked next to her toward the stairs and she looked at him with wide eyes.

"I saw you through the window beside the door," Keiji laughed. "But you know it's rude to answer a question with a question."

"Really?" Hitomi smiled, her head held higher. "I didn't know."

She was about to head up the stairs when he gripped the crook of her elbow before she was out of reach and pulled her back.

"Come on," he urged. "I haven't seen you skip since you had your first kiss with that idiot in middle school. What happened at school today?"

"He was not an idiot," she retorted and paused before she shook her head and tried to head up the stairs saying, "I don't wanna tell you."

"Oh, come on!" Keiji insisted, letting go of her arm and hurrying after her on the stairs. "You tell me _everything_. You told me about that kid before you even told mom and dad or Jiro!" They stopped at the top of the stairs and Keiji tugged on her arm, nearly whining, "Tell me!"

"Stop it!" Hitomi laughed, swatting his hand away. "I don't want to! You won't like it!"

"I didn't like it when you kissed the guy, but I didn't get mad!" he argued as she turned to head to her room and she stopped at that and turned back to him.

"Yes you did!" she recalled, placing her hands on her hips. "You got mad and wanted to beat him up!"

Keiji frowned and thought for a minute and mumbled, "Oh, yeah." He then shook his head and pointed a scolding finger at her. "That's not the point. Just tell me, will ya?! I wanna know why you look like you had a hanger in your mouth all day!"

"What?!" Hitomi laughed.

"You're grinning!" Keiji explained. "You're grinning like when you kissed that guy! What happened?!" Realization suddenly hit him in the face and he stared at his sister with wide eyes as she blushed and giggled, casting her eyes down, clasping her hands in front of her and swaying from side to side. "You kissed him, didn't you? You kissed that Ootori kid!"

"His _name_ is Kyouya!" Hitomi scolded, crossing her arms over her chest and Keiji's eyes widened.

"You _did_ kiss him!" he repeated, marching toward her.

"So what if I did?!" Hitomi wondered as he stopped in front of her. "It's not like I kissed him on the _mouth_. It was a peck on the cheek."

"Hitomi, what were you thinking?!" Keiji snapped.

"I was thinking he's my fiancé and I _can_ kiss him if I wanted to!" Hitomi snapped back. "None of the girls were around!"

"I'm not worried about the other girls he's flirting with!" Keiji replied. "I'm worried about _you_! Do you really think he's gonna respond to that in kind?! You said it yourself, he has no feelings!"

"That was wrong of me to say!" Hitomi cried. "I was angry at him because of something he'd said at the Host Club, but we're fine now! Things are different!"

"Do you really think he even _likes_ you, let alone _loves_ you?!" Keiji spat. "It's all business to that kid! All of it! He just wants our clinic! He's not gonna care about _you_!"

"Stop it!" Hitomi screamed, clapping her hands over her ears. "Stop it! I _knew_ you'd react this way! That's why I didn't wanna tell you!" She shot her hands down to her sides and stared at him with watery eyes. "I know you hate him! I know you hate all of this! But we have to make the best of it! _I_ like him, and that's all that matters! If he doesn't like me back I'll deal with it! He's marrying _me_ not _you_!"

"You're damn right I hate him!" Keiji snarled. "And I hate dad for agreeing to this whole thing in the first place!"

"Keiji!" Hitomi gasped. "Don't say that!"

"Well, I _do_!" Keiji insisted. "It's not fair to _you_! What if you find the guy you're supposed to be with but you're with _him_?! What then, Hitomi?!"

"That's _my_ problem, not yours!" Hitomi shot back.

"It _is_ my problem!" Keiji argued. "We're siblings! We're a _family_ or what's left of it. One person's problem is the whole family's problem!"

"Well, this is one thing that I'll go at _alone_," she insisted. "Because he's not marrying you, or Jiro, he's marrying _me_, and I expect you to be civil to him from now on, because I care about him. Even if he _never_ loves me, I'll be happy just being with him, and that's all that should matter to _you_."

She turned to make a dramatic exit to her room but was stopped in her tracks when Keiji muttered, "You're _never_ in anything alone, Hitomi. You've got us."

Hitomi swallowed the lump forming in her throat and turned to him, her eyes cast down as she muttered, "Promise?"

Keiji smiled warmly, holding his arms out to her and she ran toward him and threw her arms around him as he embraced her in turn and whispered into her hair, "I swear, Hitomi. You're stuck with us forever, like it or not. And like it or not, we're gonna be in your business."

Hitomi gave a little scoff and snuggled into him as he held her close and he muttered, "Sorry I yelled. I just don't like the fact that you're being used as a pawn in political games."

"I know," she breathed. "It's alright. I know you and Jiro are just looking out for me, and I'm glad." She pulled away to look up at him with a smile. "But I'm fine, really. I can take care of myself with him now. I'm not as afraid of him as I was before, so I'll be fine, I promise."

Keiji sighed in relief and he brought a hand up to tousle her hair as he said, "So you kissed him, huh?"

Hitomi grinned widely and nodded wildly.

"So, what did he do when you kissed him?" Keiji smirked, teasingly.

Hitomi opened her mouth to reply but blushed and shut her mouth quickly with wide eyes as she replied, "Actually…I didn't wait to see his reaction. I kind of just…kissed him and ran away."

Keiji's face dropped to stare at her with a blank expression as he repeated, "You kissed him…and ran away."

"I was nervous!" she replied. "I didn't wanna make a scene! And I was kind of afraid of what he might do. He looked a little shocked, for the split second I glanced at his face."

"Well, let's hope he doesn't get mad at you tomorrow for doing that," Keiji hoped, kissing her temple and heading down the hall. "We're going out for dinner tonight when Jiro gets home. Dress nicely, ok?"

"Again, with the dressing nice!" Hitomi sighed as she headed to her room. "I'm gonna run out of nice clothes!"

"Then go shopping!" Keiji laughed, still heading down the hall and Hitomi laughed.

She stepped into her room and shut the door, leaning back against it with a sigh. She replayed everything that had happened that day a when she got to the bits with Kyouya, she couldn't help but blush. She grinned and hugged herself, giddily. She knew it was a risk kissing him, but she couldn't help herself! She'd always thought he was handsome, obviously, but ever since she'd seen him the day before at the Host Club she'd felt a little…_differently_ about him. She didn't think him just handsome anymore…it was something more than that, but she knew it may have been for naught. This engagement was all business.

Hitomi jumped when her cell phone started ringing, and she frowned at the ringtone. She'd set that one especially for someone, but she couldn't remember who. Realization hit her like a brick and she scrambled into her bag for her phone to look at the caller ID. With wide eyes she flipped her phone open and hesitantly pressed it to her ear.

"H-Hi, Kyouya," she sputtered, then swallowed.

"_Hello, Hitomi_," he answered, and she could hear him smiling. "_Did you arrive home safely?_"

"Y-Yeah," she breathed, leaning against the door again. "Did you get home safe, too?"

"_Yes, thank you for asking_," he replied and Hitomi swallowed again.

"S-So…" she trailed off for a moment then said, "not to be rude, but why exactly did you call?"

"_To make sure you got home alright_," Kyouya replied, simply. "_Can a man not call his fiancé to see if she arrived home safely from school?_"

"Well, yeah, but you _never_ call me," she retorted.

"_And now I __have__ called you_," he chuckled.

"But why?" Hitomi wondered, her heart pounding in her ears. She was worried that any moment he was going to bring up that kiss she'd given him before leaving for the day.

"_I told you why I called_," he reminded.

"And that's it?" she replied. "Just to see that I got home ok?"

"_Should there be something else I would call you for?_" he asked, and Hitomi suddenly realized he was toying with her. She was _sure_ he had called to talk to her about the kiss, but he was just trying to get _her_ to start the conversation about it.

"Well, I thought you might want to talk about…something else," she shrugged, tactfully.

"_About what, Hitomi?_" he wondered and she could hear the smirk in his voice, making her glare ahead and set her jaw in annoyance at him.

"Just…something," she mumbled, biting the corner of her lip again.

"_Something you're afraid to bring up?_" he guessed and she still heard him smirking.

"Yes, actually," she replied, honestly.

"_Don't worry, Hitomi, I'm not upset at you for kissing me_," he said, flatly and Hitomi's eyes shot wide in shock as she blushed, deeply. "_It wasn't in front of any of the girls, so we won't lose customers, and though Tamaki and the rest of the club may have seen it, I can handle their comments_."

"Oh," she replied, vacantly.

"_I did want to ask you a question about that, however_," he continued and Hitomi felt her heart skip a beat in panic.

"Y-Yes?" she asked, hesitantly.

"_Why did you do that?_" he wondered, sincerely and Hitomi frowned. Was he serious?!

"Are you serious?" she voiced. "Do I have to say the words?"

"_Do you __want__ to say the words, Hitomi?_" he asked.

"It's rude to answer a question with a question," she retorted.

"_Yes, but I thought you and I were beyond politeness ever since yesterday?_" Kyouya retorted, and she heard him smirking again.

"Fine, then, you really wanna know why I kissed you?" she snapped, having it up to here with his games.

"_If I didn't want to know, I wouldn't have asked_," Kyouya shot back, calmly.

"It's because I like you, Kyouya," she blurted out, having a feeling she would regret it later. "I like you, and I know you don't feel that way about me, because it's all business to you, but you should know, it's not just 'business' to me, anymore. I like you, dammit!"

She waited for a calm, yet witty response from the third Ootori son but when she heard nothing, she panicked, thinking he'd hung up or had a heart attack from hearing her say that. Another moment passed in silence, but she didn't dare say anything more.

"_Have dinner with me_."

"What?!" Hitomi squeaked in wide-eyed shock.

"_You're seeing me at the Host Club now, you've already kissed me, we may as well start courting now instead of waiting until we're out of school_," he replied, and she could almost see the shrug in his tone.

"But…But what if the girls---?"

"_You let __me__ worry about that_," Kyouya interrupted. "_When are free?_"

"Uh…" she trailed off in thought, then replied, "Tomorrow night?"

"_That's fine by me_," he approved. "_What time would you like me to pick you up?_"

"S-Seven?" she sputtered, not believing anything they were saying was real. This had to be a dream.

"_Perfect, is there anywhere particular you'd like to eat?_"

"N-No. You pick the place."

"_Alright then. I'll see you tomorrow at the Host Club then. Enjoy the rest of your day, Hitomi_."

"Uh-huh," was all she could manage with a nod.

"_Good night_." Kyouya chuckled, slightly.

"Good night," Hitomi breathed, and waited until she heard the click on the other end of the phone to hang up. She stared ahead with wide eyes filled with shock. "We're gonna…go out on a date. A _real_ date, tomorrow night." She shot a gaze to her closet and shouted, "I have nothing to wear!"

* * *

Kyouya was lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling, his phone in his hand as one arm had tucked his hand under his head, the other was sprawled out beside him. He sighed as he only stared at the ceiling through his glasses, but all he could see at that moment was Hitomi.

He hadn't known why he had called her. He hadn't really known why he'd asked her to have dinner with him. He didn't even know why he wanted to be in her presence. Well, he had an idea, but he refused to believe it. Not until they were actually on the date would he even truly meditate on the theory brewing in his mind.

"Father may not like this," he mumbled to himself. "He wanted us to wait for the right time. Familiarity breeds contempt, he would say. But if I can't stop thinking about her…" He trailed off, not knowing how to finish his thought and sat up. "I suppose I'll just have to hang out with her to fulfill this urge and it'll go away once I've indulged it enough. It won't take long, I'm sure."

But somehow, he had a feeling it wouldn't go away that easily, as much as he wanted it to. Then again, maybe he _didn't_ want it to go away?

* * *

**A/N:** ok, yea, it's short. i love phone conversations...i dont know why, i just like writing em...they're fun! well, reviews?


	6. Request

**A/N:** and here's the next chappie! enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 6: Request**_

"A date?!" Jiro and Keiji snapped in disbelief together as they watched Hitomi enter the front door before them leading into the house. They couldn't believe she'd just said that Kyouya asked her out to dinner.

"I thought you two were gonna wait until you were out of school?!" Keiji continued, hurrying after her as Jiro followed, shutting the door behind them. "What does he want to go out to dinner with you for?!"

"Maybe just to have dinner with me," Hitomi shrugged, heading up the stairs. "In any case, I said yes."

"You what?!" Keiji snapped, stopping dead in his tracks.

"She said yes," Jiro repeated, passing by his younger brother, as the other glared at him.

"I heard," he muttered at his brother then yelled at his sister, "My question is, why?!"

"Because I want to," Hitomi replied, still heading up the stairs as Keiji trailed behind her and their older brother.

"What's in it for _him_, besides your company?" Keiji grumbled. "He has a good reason for asking to go out with you, otherwise he wouldn't have bothered."

"I'm not so sure," Hitomi mused as they reached the top of the stairs and both brothers frowned at her.

"What do you mean?" Jiro wondered and Hitomi turned to her brothers.

"I don't know," she mumbled. "Things are a bit different between us now. He isn't mad when I speak my mind to him, no matter how sarcastic and tactless I am. If he didn't care _at all_ about me, even as a friend, he wouldn't tolerate my speaking to him that way. I don't think he's doing this just for some sort of gain for himself. Maybe, he actually _wants_ to see me, just because?"

"I'm sure that's the case," Jiro smiled, patting her shoulder.

"I dunno," Keiji muttered, catching both their attentions. "Asking you out like this, out of the blue? It's not like him, is it?"

"Well, no," Hitomi admitted. "But he asked me after I told him that I like him---"

"You told him what?!" Jiro and Keiji snapped again and Hitomi winced at her words. She should have seen that coming.

"What's the big deal?" she laughed, nervously with an equally nervous smirk. "He's my fiancé, isn't he? I'm _allowed_ to like him, aren't I?"

"Well, yeah, but isn't it a little risky telling him that when he may not feel the same way about _you_?" Jiro wondered, making Hitomi stare at him with wide eyes.

"Well, that was unexpected from _you_," Hitomi voiced, but the statement was ignored.

"It was risky anyway, whether he returns her feelings or not," Keiji spoke up, irritably as he stepped toward his sister. "You're playing with fire, Hitomi. Telling him that…he may use it against you."

"I'm no threat, Keiji," she chuckled. "What could I do to him? _You're_ the ones he has to worry about, and not even that. The only reason father even agreed to this marriage was because Kyouya's father agreed to let the two of you run the clinic under the Ootori name, right? They have the clinic already, and everyone's happy."

"Not everyone," Keiji reminded her. "You guys aren't in love with each other. What if you don't like him as much as you did after you got married? Then you'd be miserable for the rest of your life just 'cause _we_ couldn't get enough money to run the clinic!"

"Kyouya is a good boy, Keiji," Jiro spoke up, turning his siblings' attentions to him. "You know that as well as I do. He'll treat her right, you even agreed with me on that, if you recall."

Keiji shot a glare at Jiro who only smirked back at him as Hitomi stared wide eyes, filled with disbelief at her older brother.

"You did?" she breathed with a growing smile and Keiji shot his gaze to his little sister who grinned widely and threw herself at her brother. "I knew you liked him! Deep down, I _knew_ you thought he was a good guy!"

"Hey---!" Keiji sputtered. "Wait a minute! That doesn't mean I _approve_ of this whole thing!"

"Keiji, you big teddy bear! I can't believe you fooled me this whole time!" Hitomi grinned, still hugging him fiercely as Jiro struggled to keep himself from laughing.

"I'm not a teddy bear!" Keiji protested, blushing at being called that. "You'd better not tell anybody I am! _Especially_ Kyouya!"

"Come on, Keiji," Jiro smirked as Hitomi detached herself from him. "You can't keep up your Macho Man façade anymore with our sister."

"Jiro, you're not helping," Keiji blurted, glaring at him.

"When do I _ever_ help you?" Jiro smirked back.

"Guys, we have a problem," Hitomi said and they both looked at her in wonder. "I don't have anything to wear."

"That _can't_ be true," Jiro chuckled and Hitomi stuck her tongue out ay him. "Keiji'll help you find something."

"Why _me_?!" Keiji squeaked. "I'm no good with girl clothes!"

"Oh, and _I_ am?" Jiro wondered, sarcastically. "I'm a guy too, ya know."

"Forget it!" Hitomi snapped. "I'll just have Mika come over tomorrow after school."

"Don't you have the Host Club after school?" Keiji sneered at the mention of it.

"Yeah," Hitomi replied. "That's what I mean. "After the Host Club."

"I'm surprised Kyouya's letting you visit him there as a customer," Jiro voiced.

"He doesn't seem to mind it," Hitomi replied. "He just treats me like a regular customer. No special treatment or anything. He gets a profit from my being a customer and I get to see him. Win, win."

"I thought you didn't _like_ the way he tried to gain profit from everything," Keiji retorted and Hitomi glared at him.

"I don't," she admitted. "But there's no getting around it. I can't change him."

"I'm glad you're not one of those girls who thinks she _can_," Jiro sighed and relief and hooked his arm around her neck and hugging her.

"One of us is going with you on this date," Keiji blurted, making his siblings look at him, one with a blank look the other with a smirk.

"Keiji, don't be ridiculous," Hitomi protested flatly, she being the one with the blank look. "I doubt he'll try to make an inappropriate move on me. He's not like that."

"It's not right for you to go out with him without a chaperone," Keiji insisted.

"You were born in the wrong century, brother," Jiro chuckled, he being the one with the smirk over his lips. "These kids don't need chaperones. We can trust them. Besides, Hitomi won't let him do anything even if he tried."

"Oh, he'll _try_," Keiji retorted. "Believe me, no matter how respectable or nice the guy may seem, they always _try_ to cop a feel or steal a kiss or even---"

"Kyouya won't do that," Hitomi argued. "And _I_ won't let him, either. Just let it be, alright?"

With that, Hitomi uncoiled her oldest brother's arm from around her neck and headed down the hall to her room. Keiji huffed, crossing his arms over his chest as Jiro only chuckled at him.

"You need to be more subtle," Jiro smirked at his younger brother who looked up at him with wide eyes.

"What do you mean?" he wondered.

"I mean, don't give away the punch-line before the joke's through," the older Sasaki brother smirked, mischievously. "You think I'd let our little sister go out alone with even the most respectable Ootori son?"

Keiji's eyes widened in awe at his older brother and Jiro only patted his shoulder reassuringly as he headed toward his room.

* * *

Hitomi shut the door quickly and hurried to her bed to shove her hand under the mattress. She slipped her hand out, holding something in it then shot to her feet and spun around to plop onto her bed. She held the magazine in her lap and smiled down at the cover which had a picture of the Host Club in formal wear.

On the cover was an all girls poker tournament, with the Host Club as the dealers.

She was very glad that the girl she'd met that day bought a cop for her. She flipped through the book and went straight to the pages with Kyouya dressed in whatever theme they'd chosen throughout the week, including the themes yet to have been used that week, of which there were only two days left.

She smiled when she saw the Host Club on one page all dressed in their formal wear again, the same as it was on the cover, and at the bottom right hand corner it said, 'Thursday.' She flipped past the picture of Tamaki striking a pose with a rose in his hand and turned to a picture of Kyouya adjusting his glasses with a small, cool smile, wearing a red tie and a black suit.

"He's so handsome," she sighed with a small smile and a slight blush on her cheeks. "It's gonna be hard to keep myself in check tomorrow if he's dressed like _that_."

* * *

_The Next Day After School..._

"A date?!" Mika grinned widely at her friend as she and Hitomi headed down the hall. "With who?!"

"No one," Hitomi mumbled. "So, will you go shopping with me after the Host Club?"

"Of course!" Mika grinned again. "Just tell me who this mystery boy is."

"I told you, no one," Hitomi insisted and Mika gave a mischievous smirk.

"It's Kyouya, isn't it?" she murmured and Hitomi dropped one of her books in her arms, jumping when it thudded to the floor. Mika giggled as Hitomi quickly picked up her book with a slight blush on her cheeks. "I knew it. Don't worry, I'll keep it a secret."

"W-What are you talking about?!" Hitomi laughed, nervously. "There's no secret to be kept!"

"Liar," Mika sang. "But that's alright. I get that you can't talk about it because Kyouya's a host." She leaned into murmured, "I'll help you out if you need it."

Hitomi glanced at her and scoffed it off, rolling her eyes and pretending as if Mika was crazy, but when the other girl leaned out and Hitomi stared ahead, she glanced at her friend for a split second and muttered, "Thanks."

Mika smiled in triumph and hugged her friend by the shoulders as they reached the door of the Third Music room. They stopped at the door and Mika grinned as she gripped the handle and Hitomi quickly grabbed the other so they could enter. They both opened the doors at the same time and were met with a chorus of male voices saying, "Welcome!"

Opening the door, they found a group of poker dealers.

Hitomi couldn't help but grin when she caught sight of Kyouya and Mika quickly ran to Tamaki who wore an ensemble of tans and a black tie, holding a red rose to her with a small bow. She stepped toward Kyouya in his black suit and red tie as he adjusted his glasses, and she didn't fail to notice he looked even better than his picture in the catalog.

"Welcome, Princess," he smiled, with a bow. "I'm afraid you'll have to wait for the other girls to start our poker game."

"That's fine," she smiled as he led her toward a huge table with chairs all around it, set up for a card game. "I might just be a spectator, though. I didn't bring any money with me."

"Oh, money will be no problem," Kyouya smiled coolly, standing next to a chair and pulling it out for her. "We're not allowed to gamble on school property, as you know," he explained as Hitomi sat in the chair. "We've provided chips to make it similar to an authentic poker game, but there won't be any actual gambling."

"Well, in that case, I'll play as well," Hitomi smiled as Kyouya still stood behind her, holding the chair and she looked up to meet his gaze, still smiling.

"I'm glad to hear that," he smiled back down at her, slightly and she felt her heart skip a beat as she faced forward quickly to hide her blush. She heard him give a chuckle, but she heard something different about it, as if he was out of breath giving it.

"Kyouya," she called as he stepped away from her to walk to the other side of the table where the box of cards were.

"Yes, Princess?" he answered, pulling out a box of chips from under the tabletop. Hitomi glanced around, making sure none of the girls she'd seen from yesterday had come in yet, then leaned forward on the table.

"About dinner," she whispered, making him glance up at her. "Can I request something?"

He glanced around as well before murmuring, "Of course, Hitomi."

She smiled and set her elbows on the tabletop, entwining her fingers and setting her chin on them as she smiled, "Could you wear that to dinner tonight?"

Kyouya looked up at her with wide eyes filled with disbelief as she only continued smiling and he cleared his throat, quickly giving a cool smirk to regain his composure.

"You like this outfit that much, do you?" he wondered, honestly and Hitomi only nodded, still smiling and he smirked, "Then I suppose I have no choice."

"If you don't want to---!"

"It's alright, Hitomi," he interrupted. "I just thought it was an odd request. Why would you wish to see me in this outfit for dinner after seeing me in it the whole time you're here?"

"You said it yourself," Hitomi retorted. "Because I like it."

Kyouya couldn't help but smirk as he turned back to the box of chips he'd set on the table, and after taking them out he slid some of the chips to Hitomi across the table.

"Your chips, Princess," he smiled, coolly.

"Thank you," she smiled back, and couldn't believe she was flirting back so blatantly like this then couldn't help saying one thing before one of the other girls that were to come in later could say it. "You look even more handsome than you do in the catalog, Kyouya."

He gave her a cool smile and replied, "I'm flattered, Princess. Are you enjoying your catalog, by the way?"

"Yes," Hitomi nodded, picking up a chip to play with it as she spoke. "What was that girl's name? I'd like to thank her."

"Princess Kanagawa," Kyouya replied. "Ichigo Kanagawa."

Hitomi nodded as he picked up the cards and started shuffling them. Hitomi leaned on the heel of her hand and watched him shuffle the deck. She bit the corner of her lip as she watched his hands and he glanced at her a few times with a small smirk that she didn't notice.

"Oh, Kyouya! You look so handsome!"

Hitomi was jolted from her trance with his hands when she heard a familiar voice coming their way and Kyouya walked away to greet his guests that had just walked in.

"You flatter me, Princess," he smiled and entreated them toward the table with a hand held to it. "Won't you all have a seat?"

The girls giggled and they stood next to their chairs as Kyouya came up next to each girl and pulled out each of their chairs as he had done for Hitomi. She glanced around at the girls then looked up to see the girl next to her was the one that had footed the bill for her catalog.

"Ichigo Kanagawa?" she asked, hesitantly and the girl with brown hair turned her gray eyes to her in wonder.

"Yes, Hitomi?" she smiled.

"Thank you for the catalog," she grinned. "How much do I owe you for it?"

"Don't be silly!" Ichigo laughed. "You don't 'owe' me for it! Like I said yesterday, every girl needs eye candy."

"But---"

"Don't you even think about giving me money," Ichigo insisted. "Think of it as a welcome present from me to you."

"Well, thank you," Hitomi smiled. "I still feel like I should repay you somehow."

"Just have fun here and we'll call it even," Ichigo smiled, patting Hitomi's hand as Kyouya went back to shuffling the cards on the table.

"Kyouya, what are we playing today?" one of the girls asked him.

"Well, we have a number of games arranged for today, ladies," he smiled, leaning on the table. "Poker. Black Jack. Take your pick of any card game you can think of."

"Do you know the rules for all of the games you've arranged today, Kyouya?" another girl wondered.

"We've all done some research on the games we have set up today," he nodded.

"Was it hard to learn in such a short amount of time?" Ichigo asked as Kyouya pulled out more boxes of chips for the other girls.

"Not for me," Kyouya replied. "I'm not sure about the other hosts. However, we wanted everything to be perfect for you girls, even our knowledge and conduct as your dealers for today."

"Kyouya, you're so wonderful!" another girl smiled, giddily and Hitomi gave a small, silent sigh of disappointment. The girls were here now.

"Oh, by the way," Kyouya continued. "We had special cards made for today with pictures of the Host Club on them. Would you girls like a set for yourselves? We have plenty of sets."

"Oh, could we?!" the girls cheered together and Hitomi let herself sigh this time.

_There he goes, pitching products again_, she thought.

"Would you like a set as well, Princess Sasaki?" Kyouya wondered and straightened as she looked at him with wide eyes. Their eyes locked and she found herself unable to say 'No thank you.'

"Sh-Sure," she sputtered and he nodded with a slight smirk.

"Are those the cards you're using now, Kyouya?" one of the girls asked.

"Yes, actually," he replied and set a deck of cards on the table for the girls to look at while he continued shuffling the cards in his hands. "Have a look."

Ichigo was the one to grab the deck and sift through them as the other girls leaned over her shoulders to see and Hitomi leaned over to see as well, but she was too far away so she sat back.

"Would you like to see them, Hitomi?" Ichigo asked after a moment and handed them to the blue-eyed girl. Hitomi took them, nodding her thanks and gazed down at the deck to see the same picture of the group in their formal wear that was on the cover of the catalog. Flipping over the top card, she smiled at seeing that they had printed each host as a certain card.

Tamaki was the King, Kyouya was the Queen, (which Hitomi frowned at) the Twins were the Jack, and the whole Host Club was the Ace.

"Now, ladies," Kyouya called, drawing their attentions and setting the cards on the table. "What game would you like to play?"

* * *

**A/N:** well, there it is. how'd ya like it? i Kyouya would have something made for the girls, after all, they need the money to keep up with Tamaki's crazy themes and Honey's candy obsession, right? lol. reviews?


	7. Date

**A/N:** and the next chappie. i warn, is long. enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 7: Date**_

"Did you find something to wear?" Jiro asked as Hitomi walked into the front door and he and Keiji stood at the top of the stairs. She frowned up at them as the servant that had let her in shut the door behind her and she hesitantly headed toward the stairs.

"Yes," she hummed, narrowing her gaze at her brothers.

"Is it nice?" Keiji asked as she stepped up the stairs.

"Yes," she replied, just as slowly as she had given the first response.

"Can we see it?" they suddenly asked together and Hitomi stopped in front of them.

"No," she blurted and headed toward her room.

"Why not?!" Keiji nearly snapped, following her. "You got something sexy, didn't you?!"

"None of your business!" Hitomi sang, walking into her room. "I have to get ready now! Kyouya is gonna pick me up at seven, so if he gets here before I'm ready, stall for me!"

She shut the door and Keiji growled at the closed door then spun around to glare at Jiro and snapped, "She bought something sexy!"

"We'll see it when she's ready," Jiro shrugged then waved his younger brother toward him. "Come on, we have to get ready too."

Keiji sneered but followed his brother down the hall.

* * *

_One hour later..._

Kyouya rubbed his fingers over the palm of his hands. He could feel his pulse pounding through them and had to swallow before pressing the doorbell. What was he so nervous about? It was just Hitomi. He'd had dinner with her before. What was so different about tonight?

He nearly jumped out of his skin when the servant opened the door for him to enter. He stepped in, his hands behind his back to hold them in order to keep them from shaking, which had started when the door opened.

"Hello Kyouya," Jiro smiled, coming from the study to the left of the door and catching the young man's attention. "That's a nice suit you're wearing."

"Thank you," Kyouya replied as he shook Jiro's hand.

"Hitomi will be down in a moment," he assured him. "I was instructed to stall in case she was took too much time getting ready."

"I don't mind waiting," Kyouya replied then wondered, "Where's Keiji?"

"Oh, he's in the garage working on his car," Jiro shrugged. "He's been working on that little hot rod of his for months to restore it. Maybe when it's finished we'll take you for a ride?"

_Why would I want to do that?_ Kyouya thought to himself, but smiled, charmingly and instead replied, "Oh, no thank, Jiro. As fun as it sounds, I'm sure Keiji isn't restoring the thing to ride around in it."

"I guess you're right," Jiro laughed. "He'd keep it in an air tight glass frame if he could!"

Kyouya only continued smiling as Jiro laughed, heartily then looked to the stairs, praying Hitomi didn't take too much longer. As soon as he looked up, his prayer was answered and he saw her coming down the stairs, but he hadn't expected the image in front of him.

Hitomi slowly descended the stairs wearing a red dress with a spaghetti strap running from the bodice of the dress up and around her neck and the length fell just below the knee, showing slim lower legs and red, open-toed heels. She pulled the red shawl she wore a little tighter around her shoulders and gave her flipped hair one last comb-through with a hand before reaching the end of the stairs.

"Keiji's not gonna like your dress," Jiro blurted to her as she headed toward he and Kyouya.

"Well, Keiji's not here, is he?" Hitomi smirked back at her brother as she stopped in front of Kyouya and gave him a full smile. "Good evening, Kyouya."

Kyouya had to swallow silently before responding, "Good evening, Hitomi."

"Have her back here by…eight o'clock," Jiro instructed and Kyouya looked up at him with a slight frown. He sounded dead serious but Hitomi rolled her eyes and shook her head at her brother.

"Very funny," Hitomi retorted and Jiro raised a brow at her. "Eleven."

"Hell no," Jiro shot back. "Ten."

"Thirty," Hitomi amended and Jiro rolled his eyes this time.

"Fine," he sighed then turned to Kyouya and repeated, "Ten thirty."

Kyouya only nodded with a charming smile and jumped when Hitomi slid her arm through his, gently urging him to the door.

"Alright, let's get going!" Hitomi grinned, suddenly nearly dragging Kyouya out the door. "We only have till ten thirty, so we better hit the road! Tell Keiji I said bye, ok, Jiro?! Bye! Be back later!"

The door shut behind the two and Jiro blinked at the door for a moment but quickly spun around and ran toward the garage where Keiji truthfully was, only he wasn't working _on_ the car, he was _in_ the car.

"Hurry up, Jiro!" Keiji snarled from behind the wheel as the oldest Sasaki brother ran through the door leading from the house to the garage, shut it, then pushed the button to the garage door to drive the car through that was on the wall before nearly skipping toward the car and stood on the driver's side. Keiji glanced up at his brother with a frown and asked, "What?"

"Don't be stupid, you're not driving my baby," Jiro snickered and Keiji sucked his tongue on his teeth as he got out of the car and walked around to the passenger seat as Jiro got into the driver's seat. As they both shut the door Keiji crossed his arms over his chest in a slight huff.

"I don't see why you won't let me drive the stupid car," he grumbled as Jiro started the engine.

"_That's_ why," he replied. "You have no respect for her if you call her stupid."

"Oh, please," Keiji chuckled. "It's a _car_ not a _woman_."

"A car is _like_ a woman," Jiro smiled, lovingly stroking the dashboard of his hot rod red Mustang convertible. "You have to treat her right, take good care of her, respect her, and she'll give you all her love in a great ride."

Keiji stared blankly at his brother as he continued to stroke the dashboard with a goofy grin on his face then blurted, "Hitomi and Kyouya are gonna find a hotel room and get it on if you don't quit stroking that friggin' dashboard like it's a woman's ass."

Jiro gave his brother a sideways glare and pressed his foot on the gas, both hands on the steering wheel as he muttered, "Way to ruin the fantasy, man."

* * *

Kyouya opened the car door for Hitomi who smiled at him as she slid into the car and he followed. He told the driver where to go and Hitomi shifted slightly to face him.

"I'm sorry I rushed you out like that," she began, catching his attention. "I just knew Jiro would end up embarrassing me somehow. He's nice when he invites someone to dinner, but when he's in big brother mode when a guy asks me out on a date, he gets a little _too_ big brother-like, ya know?"

"It's alright," Kyouya smiled. "I can understand that. My sister has that trouble with my older brothers as well."

"How is she, by the way?" Hitomi smiled.

"She's doing well," Kyouya nodded then suddenly changed the subject, saying, "Keiji doesn't seem like a hot rod kind of guy. What kind of car is he working on?"

Hitomi frowned at him and wondered if she'd heard right by asking, "Keiji? He's not working on a car. _Jiro_ was working on his Mustang, but it's he just finished it. He drives it around to impress girls."

"Is that so?" Kyouya nodded slowly in understanding with a small smirk then glanced into the rear view mirror from his seat. "So, Jiro's Mustang, is it red?"

"Yeah," Hitomi replied, with a frown. "How'd you know?"

"Does it look anything like the one that's following us?" he smirked and Hitomi whirled around to see head lights but she recognized the car they belonged to and her face dropped.

"Yes," she groaned, turning back around. "I can't believe those two clowns are following us!"

"Not to worry," Kyouya smiled, patting one of her hands and he leaned forward to tell the driver, "Lose the car behind us, would you?"

The driver nodded and as Kyouya sat back the car turned a little too quickly and Hitomi was shoved against the young man next to her. She landed against his chest, causing him to give a slight grunt and she instantly looked up at him with wide eyes and a slight blush as he looked down at her with slightly widened eyes himself, his glasses a bit crooked.

"S-Sorry," she sputtered, trying to sit up, but the car jerked to the other side, and this time, Kyouya was flung onto her. She was pinned between him and the car door and he stared at her with wide eyes as he swallowed, silently but she swallowed audibly.

"Sorry," he muttered, pushing slightly away so that he wasn't shoved _completely_ against her, but still close enough to hear his heart pounding in his ears.

"It's ok," Hitomi breathed, swallowing again and she lifted her hands to his face to fix his glasses for him then started fiddling with his tie with one hand. "I didn't get a chance to say thank you for wearing this…wonderful suit."

"You're welcome," Kyouya replied, his eyes scanning over her face. "I didn't get a chance to tell _you_ that you look…" He trailed off to swallow, feeling as if he couldn't breath, his heart was pounding so hard.

"Nice?" Hitomi finished for him, guessing that was the word he was looking for.

"I was going for speechless, actually," he admitted and her eyes widened in surprise.

"For a host, it's pretty easy to render you speechless," Hitomi joked, trying to lighten the mood, and feeling her breath coming out in short, shallow bursts.

"Easy?" Kyouya scoffed. "Hardly. You of all people should know how hard it is to _truly_ impress me."

"That's why I don't understand why you would say you're speechless," Hitomi confessed then chuckled, "Are you drunk or something?"

"Drunk on _you_," he blurted and Hitomi's eyes snapped open in pure shock but Kyouya only smirked. "Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Hitomi's shock calmed and she smirked, retorting, "You sounded like Tamaki, saying that to me. Trying something new, are we?"

"Perhaps," he replied as they still sat close to each other. "For some reason, you bring out the adventurous side of me."

"Well, I have to say, I _like_ this side of you," Hitomi smiled. "I guess we bring out our hidden personality traits in each other, hm? Since when I'm around _you_ I'm as blunt as chopstick, and now when _you're_ around _me_ you're almost as mischievous as those Hitachiin Twins."

"Well, am I Tamaki or the twins, now?" Kyouya smirked, jokingly.

"Don't be silly," Hitomi murmured back with a small smile and impulsively ran a hand down his cheek as she said, "You're _you_."

Their eyes locked and Hitomi swallowed again as Kyouya only stared at her for a moment, frozen by her touch. His gaze scanned over her face again as she slowly lowered her hand and she felt her heart skip a beat when he slowly leaned toward her face.

_Oh, God! He's gonna kiss me!_ she giddily yelled in her head and had to fight her lips from curling into a smile as he still leaned slowly toward her. Her hands found his jacket collar and gently gripped it, wanting to pull him close, but afraid to at the same time. She let her eyes flutter shut when he was close enough to fan his minty breath across her lips. Neither one of them noticed the car stop, so close to each other's lips.

"We've arrived, Young Master," the driver said, making them both jump and pull away as if burned, and Hitomi gave a small groan but snapped her attention to Kyouya when he gave a very soft growl. She stared at him in disbelief as he opened the door and got out. He sounded as disappointed as she was, but she almost couldn't believe it. She hurried out of the car herself and pulled her shall a little tighter around herself as she straightened out her dress as well.

Kyouya gently took her hand and wrapped it around his arm as she looked up at him with wide eyes. He only smiled down at her, making her smile back and he walked her into the restaurant but as they walked in he glanced to his right and noticed a hot rod red Mustang pull up a few feet away and park and he smirked as he leaned toward Hitomi's ear.

"Your brother drives pretty well if he could stay on our tail the whole way," he murmured and Hitomi looked up at him as they entered the restaurant.

"Are you serious?!" she hissed and he only gave a chuckle as she sighed in hopelessness. "I'm gonna kill those two."

"Be thankful you're not my sister," Kyouya chuckled. "My brothers had our secret police following her on one of her dates."

"That's…a waste of resources," Hitomi smirked.

"Yes, well, needless to say, our father was not at all pleased," he replied as they walked up to the hostess and he gave them the name for their reservation. The hostess led them to their table and Kyouya pulled out Hitomi's chair for her before sitting himself.

"Would you like to start off with drinks, Mr. Ootori?" the waitress asked and he replied he would stick with water, which Hitomi agreed with as she looked at him with wide eyes and the waitress said she'd give them a moment to decide on what to order.

"Do you come here often?" Hitomi wondered once the waitress was gone.

"No," Kyouya shrugged. "But who doesn't know the Ootori name nowadays?"

"Love that modesty, Kyouya," she muttered, looking over her menu and he tried to glare at her but couldn't keep himself from smirking at her attitude. The attitude that intrigued him.

"Well, it's true, isn't it?" he replied, leaning on the table. "Many of the names in the Host Club are famous ones. I'm sure if I called out any one of the names right now some of the people in this restaurant would turn to see if I was talking to them."

"Again, I absolutely _love_ your modesty," Hitomi smiled, leaning on the table as well and he adjusted his glasses with a slight smirk. He glanced to the door and couldn't help giving a small chuckle making Hitomi frown in confusion at him and asked, "What?"

"Your brothers just walked in the door," he smirked and Hitomi's eyes shot wide and she was about to turn around to see if it was true, but Kyouya caught her hand and made her shoot a wide-eyed gaze at him. "Pretend you don't know they're here."

"Why?" Hitomi wondered, genuinely and Kyouya gave a sly smirk.

"To be adventurous," he murmured, still holding her hand which Hitomi had not failed to notice. She swallowed and glanced down at their hands with a slight blush but she leaned toward him on the table.

"And how, exactly are we going to be adventurous?" she wondered in a hushed tone.

"Just pretend you don't know they're here," he replied, watching the Sasaki brothers heading toward a table. "What would you do if you knew your brothers were watching just to upset them?"

Hitomi cocked an eyebrow at him in amusement and slowly gave a sly smile. She glanced around and noticed her brothers at a table with a clear sight of herself and Kyouya and her smile grew as she looked back at Kyouya.

"There are _a lot_ of things I wanna do to upset them," she replied. "But if you're talking about something to upset them right _now_, I think they'd be really upset if I flirted with you shamelessly."

"By all means, flirt away then," he retorted and she scoffed, sitting back in her seat, their hands sliding away from each other.

"Yeah, right," she scoffed. "Like I'd have any effect on you anyway if I flirted with you."

"Well, you won't know unless you tried," he shrugged, taking a sip of his water and she watched him in thought then sat forward again, placing a hand on the table.

"Ok, then," she smiled, mischievously. "Hold my hand like you were before. That'll _really_ make them mad."

"The point is to get them mad at _you_, not _me_," Kyouya smirked but leaned forward on the table anyway and placed his hand on hers, making her smile.

"Are they looking?" she asked and he glanced at them then nodded. "Are they unhappy?"

He nodded again and her smile grew.

"This is fun," she grinned, bouncing slightly in her seat. "Maybe we can get _really_ adventurous and stay out later than we're supposed to?"

"One step at a time, Hitomi," Kyouya smirked, suddenly stroking her fingers with his thumbs and she blushed at the touch. "Let's just start with little things for now, shall we?"

"W-What else did you have in mind?" she wondered, honestly but Kyouya only smirked as he lifted the hand he was holding and kissed it, gently. Hitomi's eyes widened as her blush deepened as he lowered her hand and she glanced to where her brothers were sitting. "Keiji doesn't look happy."

"_Just_ Keiji?" Kyouya smirked, still holding her hand.

"Well, _he's_ the one that doesn't like you," she muttered.

"Yes, I know," he replied and she looked at him with wide eyes filled with disbelief.

"You _know_?!" she squeaked and he couldn't help but smirk at her reaction.

"Of course," he shrugged. "No offense to him, but your brother isn't very subtle."

"No offense taken," Hitomi muttered. "He knows he isn't. I think he _likes_ it that way. But sometimes he's just rude."

"I'm sure," Kyouya smirked then glanced down at the menu in front of him and said, "We'd better decide what we want before the waitress comes back."

* * *

"Is he still holding her hand?" Keiji sneered as he ate his food and Jiro nodded. "I say we go over there and pound him."

"He's just holding her hand, Keiji," Jiro replied, eating as well. "Be glad they didn't get that hotel room you were talking about earlier."

"He's not just holding her hand, brother," Keiji grumbled. "You saw him kiss it earlier, didn't you?"

"Her _hand_, little brother," Jiro scoffed, shaking his head at him. "They're on a date, what do you expect?"

"I expect to see her smack him when he says something stupid later," Keiji retorted.

"A host never says anything stupid in front of a lady," Jiro reminded his brother. "Especially _him_. From what Hitomi told me, he's supposed to be the cool and calculated one."

"You know what he's calculating, don't you?" Keiji muttered. "He's calculating how much money he can make from marrying our sister."

"That's their business, Keiji," Jiro reminded him again. "Hitomi knows what she's getting into, otherwise she wouldn't have gone out with him."

"She went out with him because she loves him," the younger Sasaki brother snapped. "She's blinded by it. She's not gonna see that he's using her to get our clinic."

Jiro glared at his brother then looked at the magazine in his hand, rolled it up and reached over to smack his younger brother upside the head with it.

"Hey!" he called, glaring at his older brother. "What the hell---?!"

"You think she's that stupid?!" Jiro hissed and Keiji sneered. "She knows, and it's probably tearing her apart inside!"

"Then why are you still behind all this and having him come over and letting take her out on a date?!" Keiji spat back.

"If he spends more time with her, he might end up falling for her, you dope!" Jiro shot back and Keiji started at his brother with wide eyes. "The feelings won't be as one sided as _you_ think they are! I gave him the opportunity to see her when I invited him to dinner, and big surprise, he asked her out the next day! He wouldn't have made a move like that if he wasn't interested!"

Keiji still stared at his brother and blinked a few times before he vacantly replied, "Oh."

"You thought I was just throwing her at him, didn't you?" Jiro smirked in amusement at his brother's sudden humble attitude.

"I didn't think you _had_ a plan," Keiji muttered, taking another bite of food. "It's actually kind of a relief that I now know you weren't just looking the other way."

"I knew you'd be your usual over-protective self," Jiro smirked, glancing through his magazine. "So even if I _had_ looked the other way, I knew you'd take care of anything that happened."

"And here I thought you saw me as an idiot," Keiji retorted and Jiro scoffed but straightened in his seat, catching his younger brother's attention.

"What?" he asked and looked in the direction his brother's gaze was glued. Kyouya and Hitomi were done with dinner and leaving.

"Check please!" Jiro called to their waiter. "And make it quick."

"I'll wait in the car," Keiji told him but when he stood to walk out the door, Jiro grabbed the tail of his jacket and shoved him back down in his seat.

"You think _I'm_ gonna pay for your food?" the older Sasaki brother retorted just as the waiter brought them their check. Keiji gave an exaggerated sigh and the brothers looked at the piece of paper to divide the amount between them.

"What the---?!" they both snapped but Keiji finished, "We didn't order all this!"

The younger brother went to call the waiter but Jiro stopped him.

"Wait a minute," he said, still looking at the check. "What did Hitomi and Kyouya order?"

"I dunno," Keiji shrugged. "Looked like some sort of chicken dish. They ordered the same thing."

Jiro smirked, then snickered, then burst into laughter and Keiji frowned at him in utter confusion.

"What the hell are you laughing about?" he snapped and Jiro looked at his younger brother, still laughing.

"They knew we were here!" he laughed, hysterically. "They told their waiter to give us the bill for their food!"

"And you find that funny?!" Keiji snapped.

"I find it hilarious!" Jiro laughed and Keiji groaned, rubbing his eyes and feeling a headache coming on.

* * *

Hitomi hurried into the car, giggling as Kyouya climbed in after her, just as hurriedly and he nearly slammed the door shut behind him.

"Drive!" Kyouya ordered, and the car's tires gave a slight squeal as they drove into traffic and the two second years looked through the window behind them to see if Hitomi's brothers were out of the restaurant yet, but all they saw was their car. Hitomi burst into laughter as they faced forward again and Kyouya couldn't keep himself from smiling at her.

"I can't believe I did that!" Hitomi laughed. "That was great! I wish I could have seen their faces!"

"I'm sure Keiji was especially upset," Kyouya added and Hitomi only nodded as she continued laughing, and he only watched her, unable to fathom how pretty she looked when she laughed.

"Where to now, Young Master?" the driver asked as Hitomi slowly calmed herself from laughing. Kyouya looked at his watch and lifted his brow in slight surprise.

"Well, it's only eight o'clock," he reported and Hitomi looked at him in surprise.

"Really?" she wondered, leaning toward him to look at his watch. She took his wrist into her hand and was nearly leaning on his shoulder as he looked at her. "Oh, yeah. We have a while before you have to get me home."

She turned her head to look at him and realized how close she was to him when the tips of their noses brushed against each other's. She shrunk back slightly but didn't pull completely away as their eyes locked and she swallowed as she felt her heart skip a beat.

"Where would you like to go now?" he murmured but their eyes never left the others.

"I-I don't know," she breathed.

"Very indecisive tonight, aren't we?" he smirked and to his surprise Hitomi only nodded, deftly.

"Shall I take you home, then?" he wondered, hesitantly. He really didn't want to do that, but he didn't want to keep her with him if she didn't want to be there.

"No!" she gasped and he lifted a brow in surprise at her expression of horror. "I-I mean, no. I…I don't want to go home yet. I just…don't know what we should do now."

Kyouya gave a relieved smirk and only stared at her as he thought. An idea popped into his head and his smirk grew into a smile as he asked, "Do you like the beach?"

Hitomi frowned slightly but nodded and Kyouya nodded in return then leaned toward the driver as Hitomi sat back in her seat. She didn't hear what he told the driver, but she didn't ask when he sat back again in his own seat. She placed her hands in her lap and twiddling her thumbs when neither one of them said anything. Trying to think of something to talk about, she glanced at Kyouya and her gaze landed on his glasses.

"You know," she began, catching his attention. "It just occurred to me that I've never seen you without your glasses."

"Haven't you?" Kyouya frowned slightly but Hitomi only shook her head cutely with a small smile. He lifted his hands and pulled off his glasses then turned to her expectantly. Hitomi's smile grew and she lifted a hand to move some of his hair from his eyes to see those beautiful dark onyx orbs a little better.

"You look so handsome, Kyouya," she murmured, still smiling.

"Thank you," he replied, and couldn't help but notice her hand placed itself on his chest. He only prayed she couldn't feel his heart pounding like a drum in his chest. She suddenly glanced at his glasses in his hand and grinned as she took them and placed them over her eyes.

"How do I look?" she smiled, cutely and Kyouya couldn't help but return a cool smile.

"You look very intelligent," he complimented and Hitomi grinned, but when he reached up to take his glasses back but she pulled them off first and held them out of reach. He frowned at her in wonder and she only grinned at him. "May I have my glasses back, Hitomi?"

"No," she smiled, cutely and he tried again to take them back but she moved them again, giggling.

"Hitomi, I need my glasses," he reminded her, moving for them again but she pulled them away again, still giggling. "Hitomi---!"

He leaned forward a bit too much and they she fell back onto the seat, their eyes locking as his hand landed on the wrist of her hand that was holding his glasses. She swallowed as they stared at each other and she pulled her hand away from his to place his glasses back over his eyes. Her hands slid around his neck, impulsively and he frowned slightly at the action but said nothing about it.

"Thank you," he said of her returning his glasses and she nodded that he was welcome. His eyes scanned over her face and he couldn't keep himself from leaning toward her, slowly. Only when Hitomi's eyes fluttered shut did he close his eyes but froze when his lips brushed against hers and she gave a small surprised noise, but neither one pulled away.

"We've arrived, Young Master," the driver said and Kyouya jerked his head up in surprise as Hitomi's eyes shot open when he quickly sat up.

He gave a low growl, a little more intense than the first one Hitomi had heard him give and she sneered in disappointment as well. She quickly smiled at Kyouya in sympathy as he sighed but scooted out of the car and held the door open for her. She climbed out after him and pulled her shawl around herself a little tighter when a blast of cold air blew over her.

"Kyouya!" she breathed with a grin when she caught sight of the ocean and she spun around to look at him with wide, glittering eyes. "This is so romantic!"

"I'm glad you like it," Kyouya smiled and held out an arm. Hitomi grinned and slid her arm through his and he supported her as she quickly pulled off her shoes to hold them as they walked.

"I didn't think you like the beach," she confessed as they stepped into the sand and toward the water.

"The beach can be enjoyable," Kyouya shrugged. "With the right people, or person."

"You saying _I'm_ the right person?" Hitomi retorted, jokingly and he gave her a sideways glance with a smirk, but before he could say anything she shivered, pulling her shawl over her shoulders a little more. Kyouya instinctively started unbuttoning his jacket and pulled it off to drape it over her shoulders. She frowned and looked up at him as they only continued walking, his arms around her shoulders to fix the jacket for her.

"You're cold, aren't you?" he wondered to her questioning frown.

"Y-Yes," she admitted when he pulled away but held his arm out for her to take. She slid her arms through the jacket sleeves and took his arm, smiling up at him. She was so happy, she could have died.

* * *

"I can't believe he brought her to the beach," Keiji muttered, his arms crossed over his chest as he and his brother sat in the parked Mustang in the beach parking lot.

"Well, he's a smoothie," Jiro replied as they both watched Kyouya and Hitomi walking along the beach. "Case in point: He gave her his jacket because it's cold."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Keiji muttered again, waving it off and watching the couple on the beach as well. "If he tries to kiss her I'm gonna pound him."

"If she didn't want him to kiss her and he tried she'd pound him herself," Jiro replied, rubbing one of his eyes, tiredly.

"I'm going to sleep," Keiji yawned. "Wake me up if he's in need of a pounding."

"Quit talking big, you wimp," Jiro snapped. "You couldn't beat him up if you tried."

"With the right motivation, _anything_ is possible," Keiji retorted, shifting to be comfortable so he could sleep as Jiro rolled his eyes at his brother. He looked to the beach again and noticed the shore was void of all humans and straightened, shoving Keiji's arm.

"Keiji," he called, still looking to the sand. "Keiji, sit up."

"What?" the younger brother groaned shifting to face him.

"They're gone," Jiro replied, staring wide eyes out the windshield and Keiji shot up in his seat, staring out the windshield as well.

"What do you mean, 'they're gone'?" Keiji asked, searching the beach for them.

"They're gone!" Jiro repeated. "They were there one minute and the next…" He swept his hands through the air as he said, "…gone!"

"Well, they couldn't have gone far," Keiji theorized. "Maybe they're farther up the beach and it's too dark for us to see?"

"No, Keiji, they're _gone_," Jiro replied.

"Hi, guys!" Hitomi suddenly grinned through the open window on Keiji's side of the car and both brothers jumped and the younger one ducked with a shout of surprise. When Keiji looked up to see Hitomi glaring at them, Kyouya standing next to her, he sat up again.

"What the hell'd you scare me for?!" he snapped and Hitomi cocked an eyebrow in intrigued amusement at that question.

"You've been following us all night and you have audacity to ask me that question?" she wondered.

"What are you talking about?" Jiro smiled, charmingly. "We wanted to take my baby out for a joy-ride, that's all."

"Really?" Kyouya smirked, leaning into the window next to Hitomi. "Because I thought Keiji hadn't finished restoring it yet."

Jiro's smile dropped and Keiji glared at his older brother and snapped, "Way to go, genius! Can't even tell your lies straight."

Hitomi sighed and shook her at the two as she stood and announced, "Kyouya will take me home now, since I can't have fun with the two of _you_ on our tail!"

"Wait, Hitomi!" Keiji called as she walked away but she only kept going back to the car as Kyouya followed and the younger Sasaki brother slumped in his seat.

"Well that could've gone better," Jiro blurted and Keiji gave him a blank stare.

"You _think_?!" he spat and Jiro sneered at him as he started the car. "Let's just get home before she does?"

"What's the point of that?" Jiro wondered. "She knows we were following her anyway."

"Yeah, but I'd like to be home and settled already before she chews my ass off," Keiji muttered, slouching in his seat. "Wake me up when we get home."

"What am I, your wet nurse?!" Jiro spat. "You fall asleep in my car, you're _staying_ in the car all night. I'm not waking you up!"

"Whatever," Keiji yawned and shifted in his seat as Jiro pulled out of the parking lot.

He knew Hitomi would be mad, but he couldn't let them go out by themselves. The truth was, he was just as mad and worried as Keiji was, he just held it back a little better than his younger brother. But he swore, if Kyouya didn't treat her right, he'd pound him hard, even if Keiji only _said_ he would, Jiro _would_ do it, without a thought. No one hurt the Sasaki sister and got away with it, not even an Ootori.

* * *

**A/N:** i know! mushy-ness! and Kyouya was OOC in there somewhere, wasn't he?! *hides face* anyway, i was gonna start this chapter with Mika and Hitomi at the store picking out Hitomi's dress, but i wanted to wait to the reveal the dress when Kyouya saw it. i wanted to embelish a little Jiro and Keiji's relationship a little bit. and the near kisses i couldn't resist. i love the 'Oh! so close!' stuff. well? wucha think? reviews?


	8. Amazing Night

**A/N:** and here's the next chapter! a good night kiss? a yelling match between siblings? read and find out! (bet you're all on the edge of your seats waiting to find out what happens, huh? hee hee) enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 8: Amazing Night**_

Kyouya opened the door for Hitomi so she could climb out of the car, which she did and he walked her to the front door of her house. Once they stood right in front of the closed door they faced each other and Hitomi smiled as Kyouya shoved his hands in his pockets while she clung the edges of his jacket, still around her shoulders.

"I had a wonderful time, Kyouya," she smiled, cutely. "Other than my brother's playing 'Stake-Out' that is."

Kyouya scoffed with a small smirk and said, "They love you, that's all."

"They could show it a different way," Hitomi muttered and Kyouya scoffed again and she smiled back. "I really _did_ have a good time. The beach was a wonderful surprise, even though I should have seen it coming when you asked me if I liked the beach."

"I'm glad you liked it," he nodded then stepped closer to take one of her hands into his. "And…I had an enjoyable time as well."

Hitomi giggled and he frowned at her slightly but she answered him before he could ask by saying, "I never noticed how proper you are until you said that."

Kyouya smiled and kissed the hand he held gently as she looked up at him with suddenly wide eyes. She swallowed as he lowered her hand and their eyes locked. He stepped closer, letting go of her hand to allow her to place her hands on his chest as his very suddenly slid around her waist, under his jacket that still hung from her shoulders.

_Ok, then_, she thought. _Considering our first two attempts at this were interrupted, being forward would be better._

He pulled her closer and her eyes widened a little at the action but she didn't pull away. She cleared her throat and bit the corner of her lower lip as they only stared at each other for a moment. He hesitantly started leaning his face slowly toward hers and Hitomi had to hold back from smiling in giddiness when she closed her eyes. She felt his breath fan her lips and let out a small sigh.

They jumped when the door next to them swung open and turned to see Keiji standing in the doorway with an angry stone expression on his face as he glared at Kyouya. Without a word he grabbed Hitomi's arm and pulled her into the house making her stumble out of Kyouya's arms and into her brother's chest. He gave a grunt but kept glaring at Kyouya who stared on with wide eyes at what was happening.

"Alright, get outta here," Keiji snapped, shoving Hitomi behind him.

"Keiji!" Hitomi gasped, shoving his arm out from in front of her and glaring at her brother. "What the hell---?!"

"It's alright, Hitomi," Kyouya cut in, causing her to look at him with wide eyes. "I'll see you at school tomorrow. Good night."

"Good night," Keiji called, mock waving as Kyouya turned and walked back to the car with his hands shoved in his pockets. The middle Sasaki sibling turned to Hitomi and tried ushering her toward the stairs. "Alright, let's get you off to bed. It's late---"

"Keiji, you jerk!" Hitomi snarled and ran around him to the still open door and stood in the threshold to see Kyouya about ready to get into the car. "Kyouya!"

He stopped just short of climbing into the back seat and looked at her in question as she ran toward him. He turned toward her fully just in time for her to throw her arms around his neck and plant her lips to his, shoving him against the car doorframe and his eyes popped in surprise. He didn't know what to do for a moment and only stood there as she didn't let go of him or leave his lips, her eyes shut. He finally sighed, his eyes closing as well and slid his arms around her waist to pull her closer as his mouth took on a mind of its own.

Hitomi gave a small moan when Kyouya's tongue ran over the seam of her lips and she parted them to let it enter. He kissed her deeply, and though she was enjoying the kiss, thoroughly, she had to admit, the fact that he was so willing was a bit different for Kyouya Ootori. However, she refused to complain.

She slid her hands from around his neck to rest them on his chest as they slowly yet reluctantly pulled away but Kyouya still held her around her waist as they locked eyes, breathing heavily and Hitomi swallowed.

"You…" she breathed and Kyouya cocked an eyebrow in wonder at what she was going to say. "You…You forgot your jacket."

She slid his jacket from her shoulders and pressed it to his chest as he refused to let her go just yet.

"Thank you for letting me use it at the beach," she smiled, her cheeks slightly flush from their kiss.

"You're welcome," Kyouya breathed, licking his lips. "I…I couldn't let you catch cold."

"Yes, that would have been terrible," she agreed. "Then I wouldn't be able to go to school and see you at the Host Club."

"Precisely," he nodded, slowly and her smile grew a bit as he only stared at her, his glasses slipping slightly down the bridge of his nose but he didn't bother to try to fix them.

"Well, I should get inside," Hitomi mumbled. "I'm sure Keiji is probably throwing a fit right now."

"Yes," Kyouya nodded, hesitantly lowering his arms from around her waist and gripping his jacket from her hands as she stepped away. "Good night, Hitomi."

"Good night, Kyouya," she smiled and before turning back to the house she quickly pressed a tender kiss to his lips which he quickly returned and she hurried back to the door, leaving Kyouya wide-eyed and staring at the door, even after it shut. He stared at it for another moment before getting into the car, slamming the door shut and throwing his jacket onto the seat next to him.

"Take me home," he sighed to the driver.

"Yes, Young Master," he replied and they drove off as Kyouya sighed again, running both hands through his dark hair. His knees were shaking. He placed his hands on his knees to stop them but they only shook more because his _hands_ were shaking as well.

_That hasn't happened to me before_, he recalled, silently. _For the first time, I didn't know what to do. And then when we pulled away to speak I...I lost my cool for a moment._

He placed a hand on his pounding heart and breathed deeply to try to calm himself.

_I have a feeling this isn't just business anymore...for __either__ of us._

* * *

Hitomi leaned against the door with a sigh and a smile as she shut it but straightened and her smile dropped when an angry Keiji glared at her, his arms crossed over his chest and a smirking Jiro walked up next to him from coming down the stairs.

"Get your good night kiss, did you?" Jiro smirked and she only glared at him.

"He grabbed your ass, didn't he?" Keiji snapped and his sister turned her glare to him. She didn't hesitate to march toward them and smack them both upside the head, making them cringe.

"Ow!"

"Hey! What was that---?!"

"Don't you even _think_ about asking me what that was for!" Hitomi snapped before Keiji could finish as the brothers rubbed their heads. "You followed us! I'm _glad_ Kyouya suggested we stick you dopes with the check!"

"Of _course_ it was his idea!" Keiji growled. "I should have known."

Hitomi lifted a hand and smacked him again upside the head.

"Dammit! What the hell?!"

"_That's_ for being so rude earlier!" Hitomi explained. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to bed."

With that she turned and headed up the stairs as Keiji rubbed his sore head and Jiro frowned up at her.

"You're not gonna yell at us?" he called and she stopped to turn to him on the stairs.

"I thought I just did," she replied.

"Well, yeah, but I thought you'd be a little more…wrathful," he admitted and Hitomi cocked a brow at his choice of words.

"Not tonight," she retorted. "I…I don't wanna ruin a wonderful night with an argument. Good night, big brothers."

"Good night, sister," they murmured together in shock as she turned and headed up the stairs then down the hall and into her room. Jiro turned to Keiji who was still rubbing his head.

"Did you hear what _I_ heard?" he wondered. "Did she say it was a wonderful night?"

"Yeah, so?" Keiji shrugged. "Of course it was. She hasn't been on a date in months."

"Yeah, but even after her _best_ dates, if we did something she didn't like, she wouldn't hesitate to chew us out for it," Jiro pointed out and Keiji frowned in thought, lowering his hand.

"That's true," he admitted in a mumble.

"I think Kyouya is getting to her," Jiro theorized and Keiji looked up at his brother with wide eyes. "And the way Kyouya was tonight…I think _she's_ getting to him, too."

* * *

Hitomi shoved herself back against her closed door and breathed deeply, a hand over her rapidly beating heart. Now she could react to that kiss they way she wanted to. Oh, that kiss. That spontaneous yet _amazing_ kiss she'd been waiting for all night, and even though _she_ had to be the one to initiate it, she didn't complain. She licked her lips and giggled in excitement. She only hoped they'd have the opportunity to do that again.

Hitomi suddenly ran from the door and to her bed to take out the catalog and see what wonderful costume he would wear the next day. She stopped just when she was about to flip into the Friday section and abruptly closed it to shove it back under her mattress, standing fully next to her bed.

"No," she told herself. "It's not fair. Even though the other girls got a catalog and probably know what the Host Club will look like tomorrow, it's not fair to the other girls. I'll just have to suck it up and wait till tomorrow to see them in their costumes."

She sighed with a nod and turned to her walk-in closet to change, pulling her shawl from her shoulders to hang it up. As it crossed her face she frowned when she caught a different scent from her own. She smiled when she remembered that her shawl had been under Kyouya's jacket when she wore it at the beach and had probably picked up his scent. She pulled it back and inhaled, not being able to help grinning and thinking of him. She knew she was being sentimental, but she didn't care. She cared for him, and she was going to enjoy _everything_ about him, no matter how insignificant it was to others.

* * *

_The next morning..._

"Well?" Mika grinned as she sat on Hitomi's desk in homeroom. "How was your date? Was he irresistible?"

"Very," Hitomi smirked, flipping through one of her books. "It was surprisingly romantic, actually. Not that…_he_ isn't romantic, I just didn't think it would be as romantic as it was."

"That's three times you've said 'romantic'," Mika smirked then murmured, lowly, "You falling for your Cool Host?"

Hitomi slammed her book down on the table and stared at Mike with wide eyes and a blush over her cheeks and she leaned forward as Mika's smile grew to a grin and Hitomi gritted her teeth, saying, "You wanna say that a little louder, Mika?"

"Oh, no one's paying attention," Mika retorted, waving her off then leaning a little closer toward her friend and murmured, "But, as your best friend, I have to ask…_are_ you falling for him?"

Hitomi straightened and rolled her shoulders to relax as Mika waited, patiently. She bit her lower lip in thought then leaned closer as Mika slid from the desk to sit in the chair in front of it and leaned toward her friend.

"I think…I might be," Hitomi whispered, a grin spreading over her face and Mika returned the grin. "Last night was amazing, and it was followed by an _amazing_ kiss! I can't _wait_ to see him after school!"

"Hitomi! This is wonderful! You love him!" Mika grinned, but kept her voice down.

"Let's not jump to conclusions," Hitomi laughed, nervously. "I said I'm _falling_ for him. It may change the more time I spend with him. And I'm not even sure if he even _likes_ me, let alone loves me."

"Oh, don't give me that," Mika smiled, waving Hitomi's comment off. "If he didn't like you he wouldn't have asked you out, right?"

Hitomi looked at her friend, blinking a few times in surprise. She had to admit, the girl had a point. They both jumped when the bell rang and the students began shuffling out of the room. When Hitomi stood, Mika looped her arm around her friend's arm and pulled her close as they walked out together.

"Trust me, Hitomi," she murmured, "he likes you, I'm sure of it. And if you ask me, you should tell him how you feel about him. What's the worst that could happen?"

"He could hear me," Hitomi muttered and Mika gave a chuckle.

"If you want me to be with you when you tell him---"

"No way!" Hitomi shot out and Mika smirked at her. "If I even _wanted_ to tell him, I could handle it myself. I don't need you to hold me hand."

"Alright then," Mika shrugged then smiled deviously. "Tell him after the Host Club today. I'll stay like I always do, but when I leave, you stay. I'll wait for you so you can tell me how it went!"

"You will do no such thing, Mika," Hitomi argued. "If I want to tell him how I feel, I _certainly_ wouldn't do it here at school."

"But, he would have the weekend to think of you and miss you," Mika replied, giddily. "Perhaps he'll find that he feels the same for you!"

"This isn't a drama on TV, Mika," Hitomi muttered. "This is the _real_ world. Besides…" Her face dropped as she murmured, "it's not like it matters if he likes me or not, we'll end up…"

"End up what?" Mika wondered with a devious smirk and Hitomi jumped at her friend being right next to her face and panicked.

"N-Nothing!" Hitomi sputtered. "Nothing at all! We'd better hurry or we'll be late for class! Come on, Mika!"

* * *

**A/N:** and there it is! ok, so the whole stuff when they're at the door, let's face it, they're stalling cause they don't want the night to end! lol! anywho, how was it? did i play the kiss out alright? reviews?


	9. Invitation

**A/N:** i'm relieved. i've been getting reviews that Kyouya is just a bit OOC but not too much is makes me happy. if it goes off the deep end i'd like to know. thank you all of you who are still reading the story and for all the reviews. and without further ado, the ninth chappie. enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 9: Invitation**_

"You're telling him," Mika insisted, dragging Hitomi by the hand toward the Third Music Room after school. "Life is too short to dawdle about in telling people how you really feel. What if you _died_ tomorrow?! Then he'd _never_ know how you felt about him and he would be tormented forever!"

"Mika, I say this with love as your friend," Hitomi began, stopping her in front of the door then yelled, "This is not a TV drama, and I am not going to die tomorrow! He wouldn't even care if I died anyway! Well, he would, but he wouldn't be tormented by it."

"Of course he would!" Mika insisted, gripping Hitomi's arms and staring her in the eye. "Don't sell yourself short, Hitomi! I've seen it in the way he looks at you! Even if he doesn't admit it himself, he _loves_ you!"

"Mika, I appreciate you keeping all of this a secret, but you're going a little far with all of this," Hitomi replied, calmly. "Now, don't you wanna see what the Host Club's theme is today?"

That seemed to get the taller girl off of Hitomi's back as her face lit up and she turned to the doors. They both opened the doors and were instantly met with a chorus of "Welcome!"

The Host Club was dressed in Spanish clothes of gold embroidery and light gray material. A few of the hosts had flat hats strapped to their heads, and the others had flowing red capes. Honey had a stuffed bull draped over his back as if he were giving it a piggyback ride, and Tamaki was the only host who held a red rose in his hand.

Opening the door, they found a room full of matadors.

"Ah, our early Princesses," Tamaki smiled smoothly as he stood and strode toward the girls.

"Hello, Tamaki," Mika smiled cutely, instantly forgetting Hitomi and Kyouya's little affair. "You look very dashing in your costume."

"Why thank you, Princess Takahashi," Tamaki smiled, with a bow, the red cape attached to one of his shoulders draping over his arm as he did. "You're looking radiant yourself, Senorita."

Mika began giggling with a small blush and Hitomi took that opportunity to sneak away from her as Tamaki took her hand to kiss it. She gave a small shout of surprise when she felt herself being pushed from behind and looked down to see Honey acting like a bull and pushing her forward, gently.

"Honey-sempai?" Hitomi laughed, nervously. She suddenly felt a pair of hands each on her shoulders and glanced to either side of her to see identical faces grinning deviously at her.

"Hikaru and…Kaoru?" she frowned, confused as to why they were pushing her, then she looked ahead and saw Kyouya standing a few more steps ahead of her writing in his notebook. He obviously didn't see the four approaching him because he didn't move or look up at all. Hitomi panicked and tried to back up against the three, but the twins and Honey wouldn't have it and pushed her a little more toward him.

"Look out!" Hitomi called and Kyouya finally looked up and his eyes widened in surprise as the three hosts gave her one last shove to propel her into him. She stumbled into his arms as he dropped his notebook and caught her with a grunt as she landed against his chest. She swallowed and looked up at him with a slight blush over her cheeks but he was glaring at the three hosts who were now hurrying away to their designated areas in the Third Music room.

"I'll deal with those three later," he muttered to himself then looked down at Hitomi as she straightened. "Are you alright?"

She could only nod as she swallowed again, and she didn't fail to notice that his arms were still around her waist. He reluctantly pulled his arms away from her and she took a step back as they stared at each other for a moment and she suddenly noticed there was something different about him.

"You're not wearing your glasses," she voiced.

"No," he confirmed. "I'm wearing contacts. It would be dangerous for a matador to wear glasses, after all."

"Of course," Hitomi nodded. "That makes perfect sense." She smiled, "You enjoy making everything look authentic, don't you?"

"Some of our customers tend to nit-pick when everything isn't just so," Kyouya replied, adjusting his glasses and bending down to pick up his notebook he'd dropped. "As much as they love the Host Club, they think everything should be perfect if we are to play out a theme successfully, and I wholeheartedly agree."

"That doesn't really answer my question, does it?" Hitomi smiled, sweetly. "Do _you_ enjoy it?"

"It's not for _me_, Hitomi," he replied, holding an arm out for her to take. "It's for the customers."

"But don't _you_ enjoy it as well?" she wondered, taking his arm and he walked her to his station. "I mean, Tamaki enjoys playing out the themes and making everything nice for the girls. Don't _you_ enjoy what _you_ do?"

"I suppose if I didn't, I wouldn't be here, would I?" he smiled, coolly as they sat on a couch.

"Some people do what they don't _want_ to do because it's convenient for them for whatever reason," Hitomi replied. "So that's not really a good answer."

"Well, it will just have to do for now," Kyouya smirked and she gave him a small glare but he only chuckled at her gaze and changed the subject. "Did you sleep well last night?"

Hitomi's eyes shot wide at the question and she gazed down at her lap, twiddling her thumbs, a blush on her cheeks as she mumbled, "Yes, I did."

"I'm sure your brothers must be deaf by now from you yelling at them about last night?" he wondered with a smirk and Hitomi looked back at him with a small giggle.

"No, I didn't yell too much," she replied. "I just gave them a couple good hits to the head."

"Oh, so they aren't deaf, just bed-ridden," Kyouya smirked, jokingly and Hitomi giggled with a nod. She could feel her heart skip a beat every time he smiled at her, and just sitting here with him made her giddy as the school girl she was. She couldn't think of anything else but him the whole day. She was starting to think she _was_ in love with him, but she was _far_ from ready to tell him. They were both far from ready for that.

"Hitomi?" Kyouya suddenly called, making her jump from her thoughts and turn wide eyes at him.

"Yes---?" she choked then cleared her throat and said, "Yes, Kyouya?"

Her eyes snapped open a bit wider when he glanced around and scooted a little closer to her to whisper, "Could you stay here after the Host Club ends?"

"W-What?" Hitomi sputtered, quietly. "I…I thought I wasn't supposed to get special treatment."

"I need to talk to you about this weekend," he murmured and Hitomi gave him a frown of confusion.

"This weekend?" she echoed. "What's happening this weekend?"

"I'll tell you after the Host Club," Kyouya replied. "If you stay."

Hitomi stared into his dark onyx eyes as they waited expectantly for her answer. She glanced to the door to see some of his customers then bit her lip as she looked back at him and nodded. He gave a small smile and a nod then lifted one of her hands and placed a gentle, lingering kiss on her knuckles, making her blush and stare at him with wide eyes. He only continued smiling at her coolly then stood and turned in one swift motion to greet the rest of his customers.

"Bienvenido, Senoritas," he smiled, bowing low. "Tienen un asiento, por favor."

Hitomi stared wide eyes at Kyouya in surprise that he was speaking very good Spanish but jumped with a start when Ichigo plopped next to her on the couch and grinned, her gray eyes shining under straight, thick, brown bangs that matched her brown hair.

"Did you know Kyouya spoke such perfect Spanish?!" Ichigo grinned and Hitomi shook her head as she looked back at Kyouya. The other girls were sitting around her as he served them tea and Mexican sweets.

"Kyouya, what are these?" one of the girls asked, picking up the small plate in front of her with a small white ball on it.

"They're Mexican Wedding Cookies," he replied with a cool smile. "They're little cakes with ground nuts and powdered sugar. They are also known as Russian tea cakes. They appeared in Russia in the eighteenth century and by the twentieth century they were part of wedding and Christmas traditions in America. They're quite good."

"You're right, Kyouya!" Ichigo grinned, having taken a bite of one of her cookies. "It's melting in my mouth! And it's so sweet!"

"But certainly not as sweet as you senoritas, am I correct?" he smiled and the girls giggled with blushes as they continued eating their cakes and drinking their tea and Kyouya continued, "Incidentally, I've taken the liberty of preparing bags filled with these little pastries for each of you for only twenty-five cents."

"Oh, I'd like one, please!" one of the girls cheered. "My father will _love_ them!"

"I'd like a bag too, Kyouya!" Ichigo grinned then looked at Hitomi to ask, "Are you going to get a bag as well, Hitomi?"

"Oh, um…" she stopped when a bag was placed onto her lap and she jumped with a start, looking down at her lap with wide eyes at the thing.

"I'll collect your payment later, Senorita Sasaki," Kyouya murmured, standing close to her then stepping away to do something else. She stared at Kyouya talking to one of the other girls with wide eyes as Ichigo chattered about something. She knew what he _really_ said when he said that. He said: I'll see you after the Host Club.

* * *

_After the Host Club..._

"Alright, Hitomi," Mika whispered as the two girls walked to the door. "I'll wait here for you and you tell me what happened when you get out, ok?"

"Mika, just go home," Hitomi groaned. "This might take a while."

Mika grinned and gave a squeal of excitement then gave a mute nod. Hitomi knew if the girl spoke it would come out as squeals and squeaks. The girl pressed Hitomi's hands together, still grinning then hurried down the hall calling, "You'll call me?!"

"Yes!" Hitomi replied and turned back into the room to see the Host Club in their uniforms getting ready to leave. All except Kyouya. He was still sitting at one of the tables, typing at a laptop. She stepped away from the door and toward Kyouya but was met with an obstacle. A pair of obstacles to be exact. The Hitachiin Twins grinned devilish grins at her as she frowned at them in confusion.

"Yes?" she asked and they only continued grinning at her. "Is there something the two of you wanted?"

"Oh, nothing," they shrugged together then one called over his shoulder, "Hey, Haruhi! You coming with us or what?"

"Going with _you_?!" she heard Tamaki shout in disbelief. "Where is Haruhi going with _you_ shady twins?!"

"Nowhere, Milord," the twins lied as Hitomi slowly stepped around them. They suddenly caught her and slung their arms around her shoulders, making her freeze and glance at them in confusion as they both leaned next to her ears to talk to her.

"Go easy on the Shadow King," one of the twins advised and Hitomi shot a wide-eyed stare of surprise at the twin before the other spoke.

"He can be a little cold at times, but if he can put up with Milord…"

"He can put up with _you_," they said together and Hitomi frowned, opening her mouth to respond as she glanced between the twins but she had nothing really to say. She closed her mouth and cast her eyes down with a blush as she nodded slightly. The twins smiled to each other and lowered their arms from her shoulders and strolled away, the rest of the club following. Hitomi moved to let them pass but Tamaki stopped in front of her and she gazed up at him in wonder.

"Is there something wrong, Tamaki?" she asked and he only smiled at her, patting her shoulder as he passed her. She frowned and watched him walk away but shook away her confusion and continued toward Kyouya who still sat at the table. She heard the door shut behind her as Kyouya shut the laptop off, closed it and stood and she stopped next to him.

"Kyouya?" she called, timidly. "W-What's going on this weekend that you wanted to talk to me about?"

"I'm inviting you to a little vacation the Host Club is taking to Osaka tomorrow," Kyouya replied, not turning to her as he gathered a pile of papers next to the laptop to put into his book bag.

"O-Osaka?" Hitomi echoed in wide-eyed shock at his back. "Wait, the _Host Club_? Why are you inviting _me_ on a vacation that the Host Club is taking?"

"If you don't wish to go, you only need to say so, Hitomi," he replied, putting his laptop away as well.

"That's not what I said," she argued. "I'm just worried the other girls will find out. Not to mention, you didn't want me to expect any special treatment just because I'm your fiancé. I'm just wondering why you're doing this."

Kyouya finally turned to her, leaving his book bag on the chair and adjusting his glasses as he said, "I thought you could use a break from your brothers. Did you not want me to be a knight in shining armor, so to speak?"

"W-Well…" Hitomi sputtered, casting her eyes down and blushing as she started wringing her hands in front of her. "Well…it's really not like you to…'rescue' me."

Kyouya smirked as he stepped in front of her and she looked up at him with wide eyes as she swallowed, nervously and he murmured, "Will you come with me?"

Hitomi's eyes widened slightly when he asked that. Had she heard him right? Had he really said that the way he had? An inward battle began with her excitement and her calm. She wanted to throw herself into his arms and never let go, but she was afraid of his reaction so she only stared at him for a moment, shocked.

"Hitomi?" Kyouya prompted, taking her hands in his and making her jump with a start. "Will you?"

"I…" she breathed, a small smile coming to her lips. "I don't know what to say."

Kyouya's cool smirk returned as he replied, "Yes or no is all you need say."

Hitomi kept her eyes on him as she still smiled, her mind reeling as he still held her hands and gaze. She finally burst into a grin and gave a small nod as she replied, "Yes."

"Wonderful," Kyouya smiled and pressed a kiss to one of her hands as she continued grinning at him. "We're taking my private jet. The flight leaves at ten o'clock. I'll pick you up at eight tomorrow morning. Is that alright?"

"Perfect," she nodded. "Was there anything else?"

He lowered her hand and placed a hand on his chin in thought then answered, "Well, there is one more thing."

Before she could ask what, he pulled her toward him and planted his lips to hers, making her give a squeak of surprise as her eyes shot wide in the same. She gave another squeak when he slid his arms around her to pull her closer, but as soon as she let her eyes flutter shut, her shock melted away and she slid her arms around his neck to pull him closer. She gave a moan when he delved his tongue into her mouth and she thanked God she could bring out this adventurous side of him because she knew none of this would have happened if she didn't.

They pulled away from each other's lips slowly and their gazes met. Hitomi noticed Kyouya's glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose and lifted her hands to his face to gently push them back up for him as he only stared at her.

"Thank you," he breathed as she lowered her hands to rest on his chest after fixing his glasses.

"You're welcome," she replied. "Was there anything else before I headed home?"

"Would you like me to take you home so you don't have to walk?" he wondered but Hitomi only smiled and shook her head.

"No, thank you, Kyouya," she replied not failing to notice his arms were still around her. "Keiji's mad enough as it is."

"Jiro isn't very easy to upset, is he?" Kyouya smirked. "You would think that kiss we shared last night would have set him off."

"Well, he's approved our engagement," she reminded him. "It's _Keiji_ that doesn't like it."

"I see," he smirked, nodding in understanding. "Well, I'll have to win him over somehow, won't I?"

"That'll be _very_ difficult," Hitomi warned. "He's hard to impress. You'll have to treat me _very_ nicely and nearly wait on me hand and foot."

"Is that so?" Kyouya replied, still smirking and lifting a brow in amusement as she smiled slyly. "So, I'm heading in the right direction by inviting you to Osaka this weekend?"

"Yes, you are," Hitomi nodded and couldn't help but giggle a bit with a cute shrug as Kyouya only smiled at her. "Thank you for the invitation, by the way. I'm looking forward to it."

"I'm glad," he nodded and as Hitomi grinned, she impulsively rested her head on his chest as she wrapped her arms around him again, still smiling and Kyouya tensed as she hugged him. She suddenly realized what she was doing and shot her head up to look at him with wide eyes and a blush over her cheeks as he looked down at her with wide eyes as well.

"S-Sorry," she sputtered and pulled away, stepping from his embrace completely. "I…I should get home." She hurried toward the door, grabbing her bag from one of the couches on her way. "I'll see you tomorrow, Kyouya!"

She ran out of the room, her heart pounding in her ears, her knees shaking so badly she was sure she would fall, but thankfully she didn't. She suddenly slowed and stopped in the hall, panting heavily and still shaking, everywhere. Everything hit her right then and there.

_I'm going to Osaka with a group of boys_, she thought, _one of which is my fiancé, and just hugging him like that is making me shake all over. What is this?_

"You know very well what this is," she murmured to herself as she slowly started down the hall again. "Mika was right. I _do_ love him."

* * *

Kyouya stared at the open door Hitomi had run through, trying to breath and slow his heart. He always felt like he was going to have a heart attack when Hitomi was near him because his heart would pound like a drum in his chest. When she had hugged him, he wanted to pull her even closer and hold her there, but he'd tensed and his mind had gone blank. He wanted to kick himself for not doing what he wanted. He'd never had a problem doing what he wanted before, why was it so difficult with Hitomi?

_You know why_, his mind reminded him again. _It's the same reason you invited her to Osaka with you and the club. Just admit it to yourself already and tell her!_

"I can't tell her," he argued. "She may like me, but she couldn't possibly _love_ me. We're too different." He stopped and thought. "Of course, that hasn't stopped me from…" He trailed off and shook his head, picking up his bag. "I have to get home and prepare for tomorrow. I'll know for sure when I see her tomorrow," he hoped.

* * *

**A/N:** ta-da! this'll be fun, i'm sure. i was upset with myself because i haven't really put a lot of the Host Club in this story. it's pretty much been about Kyouya and Hitomi, so now we're gonna have some fun with the rest of them! and all the Mexican Wedding Cookie stuff is true! i looked it up on the net on Wikipedia. i figured it would suit Kyouya to explain the history behind them. and so i ask...reviews?


	10. Vacation

**A/N:** finally got this cahpter done! lol! new chappie! enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 10: Vacation**_

"I don't want you to go," Keiji said, standing in Hitomi's doorway as she hurried from closet to suitcase packing for the next day. "And if _I_ don't want you to go, you're not going. That's all there is to it. You're not going with a bunch of guys, _especially_ Kyouya, to Osaka without any adults with you."

"Jiro said it was fine," Hitomi replied, not looking away from what she was doing. "He knows, and _you_ know as well, that Kyouya won't do anything I don't want him to."

"Yeah, _he_ might not, but what about these other guys?" Keiji retorted.

"Oh, stop it, Keiji," Jiro smirked from behind him as he stepped into the doorway next to his brother. "If Kyouya hangs out with them, they're good guys."

"You don't know that for sure," Keiji snapped. "And how come you're letting her go with them?"

"Because she needs a break from _you_," Jiro retorted and Keiji glared at him then snarled and headed down the hall, leaving Jiro to chuckle at him and Hitomi still packing.

"Thanks, Jiro," Hitomi sighed, folding the clothes she was taking to fit them in her bag. "I was about ready to pummel him and kick him out."

Jiro said nothing for a moment as she continued packing, then after a few moments he said, "He's not wrong to worry, Hitomi."

She stopped and looked at her oldest brother and placed her hands on her hips to grumble, "Not you _too_?"

"Yes," he replied, seriously and Hitomi's hands lowered to her sides as her eyes widened at his tone. "Me too. We haven't met any of the other members of the Host Club, and you only talk about Kyouya. We're _both_ a little worried."

"Oh, it'll be fine, Jiro," Hitomi smiled, starting at her packing again. "Kyouya won't try anything, and the other hosts are harmless. They're all wonderful, respectful boys."

"You don't know what they're like _outside_ the Host Club, Hitomi," he assumed. "They may be charming on duty, but they're probably complete jerks on vacation."

"Nope," Hitomi chirped, shaking her head. "Kyouya wouldn't be going if that were the case, you know that."

"Even so," Jiro continued, stepping into the room and lifting half of her red bikini she'd packed with one finger, "you're not wearing _this_ around those guys."

Hitomi narrowed her gaze at him and snatched the top from his finger before stuffing it into her bag again, saying, "It's the only bathing suit I have."

"I'll buy you a new one," Jiro replied, seriously.

"Get out!" Hitomi snapped, pointing dramatically to her door before starting to shove him toward it, chanting, "Get out! Get out! Get out! Get _out_!"

Jiro stumbled into the hall and turned to the door but it slammed in his face before he could say anything. He sighed and jumped when he heard a chuckle next to him.

"Never thought I'd see the day when she'd be _that_ mad at you," Keiji smirked, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Shut up," Jiro ground out as he passed him down the hall and Keiji only continued chuckling.

* * *

Hitomi leaned against her door after slamming it shut, reminding herself to thank Kyouya again for this lovely vacation they were about to take. She loved her brothers, but there were time when she was sure she would kill them if they didn't leave her alone. This would be a welcome break from her brothers no matter what happened…almost.

Her phone suddenly rang from her bed and she dove for it, hearing the now familiar ringtone. Answering it, she pressed it to her ear.

"Kyouya?"

"_Yes, Hitomi_," he replied. "_Have you started packing yet?_"

"I'm almost finished," she smiled, turning to sit next to her suitcase. "Why?"

"_Would it be alright if I made a request of you like the one you made of me for our date?_" he asked, making her frown in wonder.

"Sure," she replied. "What's your request?"

There was a slight pause before he replied, "_I won't be offended if you refuse, but I would like to see you in that black dress you wore when I had dinner with you and your brothers_."

Hitomi frowned, wondering, _What __is__ it about that dress?_

"_You could wear it at dinner tomorrow night_," he suggested. "_Will that be acceptable_?"

"W-Well…" she trailed off, feeling a blush starting to flare up on her cheeks. "I-I don't think that will be a problem. No."

"_Wonderful_," she heard him almost sigh. "_I'll see you tomorrow morning then, yes_?"

"Yeah," Hitomi smiled, sweetly as she traced invisible circles on her sheets. "I'll see you then."

"_Sleep well, Hitomi_," he murmured into the phone and she shivered, unable to fight it, but she managed to keep it silent.

"And you, Kyouya," she whispered and before hanging up and flopping back on the bed with a sigh. "My _God_, I love him!"

* * *

_The Next Morning..._

Hitomi slowly made her way to the front door, bag in hand and shoes in the other. She hadn't told her brothers when she was being picked up to avoid any last minute annoyances they had to offer. They never failed to give her some parting advice that irritated her more than helped her. Standing at the door she slipped on her shoes then silently opened the door, stepped out, and closed it again.

She sighed in relief when she saw the limo waiting for her, Kyouya standing at the open door. She'd told him she'd be prompt, so he could just pull up and wait if he wanted to. Hitomi rushed toward the car and quickly placed a kiss on Kyouya's cheek before climbing into the open door, Kyouya following and shutting the door behind him.

"The airstrip," he ordered the driver, and they were off as Hitomi shoved her bag away from her feet and he said, "I trust your brothers gave you a thorough lecture on why they _didn't_ want you come yesterday."

"Yes," she groaned before turning a smile to him and taking one of his arms to pull him closer so she could rest her head on his arm. "But I reminded them that I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself."

"Yes, I'm sure," Kyouya smirked, not surprised at all by her actions anymore and not being able to help himself when he lifted a hand to stroke her hair, making her smile widely.

She lifted her head and looked at him with a smile, murmuring, "Can we…do something?"

Kyouya gave a frown as he asked, "Do something? Do what?"

Without another word Hitomi planted her lips to his and they both melted into the moment. Her arms slid to his chest as he shifted to face her, his hands moving around her shoulders to hold her close to him by her back, his tongue plunging into her mouth and making her moan. Her hands slid up to stroke down his neck, making him give a small moan as well which she felt through his throat on her fingertips. Finally having to breathe, the two slowly pulled away and Hitomi smiled as she placed her hands back on his chest and their eyes met.

"Do _that_," she finally explained and he gave an open-mouthed smirk as he panted only slightly from their kiss. "I figured we should get all of _that_ out of our systems while we're alone. We won't be able to do anything like that in front of your fellow club members."

"How very thoughtful of you, Hitomi," Kyouya smiled slightly, pulling her a little closer. "But I think we should dispense with talking for now, don't you?"

"If we don't talk, what are we-?"

She was cut off when his lips attacked hers and she smiled against his mouth, enjoying his adventurous side even more.

* * *

_One hour later..._

"_Ladies and gentlemen, you are now free to move about the cabin_," the pilot spoke over the PA as the Host Club sat in their seats on Kyouya's private jet.

"Osaka!" Tamaki cheered, shooting to his feet as he punched the air, making Hitomi jump as she sat next to a motionless Kyouya. The Hitachiin twins rolled their eyes as Honey cheered as well, Mori and Haruhi just as motionless as Kyouya was. Tamaki shot across the cabin to sit in the empty seat next to Hitomi and grinned, "It's been a long time since I've been to Osaka! You remember when you took me there, Kyouya?"

"Unfortunately," Kyouya muttered, making Hitomi giggle. She could imagine what taking Tamaki on a vacation would be like, and she knew she was about to find out just how crazy he could _really_ get.

"Hitomi," Tamaki called, drawing her attention back to him. "How can you put up with him? He can be so very boring sometimes."

"I'm right here, Tamaki," Kyouya reminded him, skimming through the magazine he had in his lap as Hitomi leaned toward.

"I think he knows," she whispered, making him glance at her and he gave a dark smirk.

"We're gonna hit the beach as soon as we land," the twins grinned, leaning on either side of Haruhi as they asked, "How 'bout you, Haruhi?"

"Get away from Haruhi, you pervs!" Tamaki snapped, shooting out of his seat and toward the three.

Kyouya gave a sigh of exasperation as Tamaki and the twins began their usual fight over Haruhi and Hitomi giggled at the scene. She glanced around to make sure everyone was pretty much occupied before scooting closer to Kyouya and smiling at him until he looked at her.

"Yes?" he frowned slightly as she continued smiling.

"I'm honored you decided to invite me on this little trip," she murmured, glancing around once before placing a hand over his as it sat on the armrest closest to her. "I can't thank you enough."

Kyouya glanced down at their hands before looking around at the rest of the passengers to make sure they weren't looking so he could quickly lean toward her and place a quick kiss on her cheek to say 'You're welcome.' Hitomi smiled as a slight blush stained her cheeks.

"What will you do when we get to Osaka, Hito-chan?" Honey wondered, bounding toward her and she grinned as he sat next to her.

"I was thinking of taking a swim," she replied. "What about you, Honey-senpai?"

"I'm gonna build a sand castle with Takashi!" the boy grinned, hugging his pink stuffed bunny close as Mori nodde in agreement and Honey leaned over to ask, "What about _you_, Kyo-chan?"

"I had planned on doing what I _always_ do on these vacations," he replied, not looking away from his magazine. "Sit and watch all of you make fools of yourselves."

"That'll just be Milord," Hikaru replied, overhearing the conversation.

"As usual," Kaoru continued, making Hitomi smirk as Tamaki gave them a glare, now hugging a struggling Haruhi in his arms. She broke free of his hold and shoved him at arms length as he stared his violet eyes at him in shock, watching him straighten himself out.

"What do you plan to do, Haruhi?" Hitomi wondered.

"I'll probably end up with more exercise than I need running away from these three," she replied through a good-natured smile, and Hitomi gave a small laugh in return.

"Kyouya, are you gonna have enough rooms for us all?" Tamaki suddenly wondered and Kyouya glanced at Hitomi who looked at him expectantly for an answer as well.

"Some of you may be sharing rooms," he replied, making Hitomi's small smile drop slightly as her blue eyes glowed with panic as she still stared at him. "I know you twins won't mind that."

"I don't mind sharing with Takashi!" Honey grinned, swinging his legs over the edge of his seat next to Hitomi as he looked to Mori asking, "Do you mind?"

"No," he replied, simply and Hitomi swallowed, wondering what Kyouya would say about _her_ sleeping arrangements, but he said nothing else.

_I guess I'll find out when we get there_, she thought to herself as she sat back in her seat, twiddling her thumbs in her lap. She jumped when she noticed Kyouya lean toward her out of the corner of her eye.

"Don't worry," he murmured. "You'll have your own room. I had it prepared when our…_arrangement_ was made years ago."

She turned to look him in the eye and took in a silent breath when she realized how close he was. Swallowing, she nodded and mouthed, "Thank you." He nodded and sat back as she bit her lip on a smile and sat back as well.

_Of __course__ he had it prepared_, she thought giddily. _He's __Kyouya__, dummy_.

* * *

**A/N:** ok, we had to have the relationship flourish a little bit in their privacy, right? lol! anyway, reviews?


	11. Fun in the Sun

**A/N:** new chappie! enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 11: Fun in the Sun**_

"Hurry and show us our rooms, Kyouya!" Tamaki cheered, rushing past Kyouya through the door of the mansion. "We need to change and go to the beach!" He suddenly whirled as the rest of the group stepped through the door and he knelt down on one knee and took Hitomi's hand as she stood next to Kyouya. "It will be so romantic, Hitomi. The two of us on the beach, watching the sunset-"

"What about _Haruhi_, Milord?" the Hitachiin twins grinned deviously, suddenly on either side of him and he shifted a glare between them.

"Yes, Tamaki," Kyouya chimed in, adjusting his glasses as he gave a strained smile. "What _about_ Haruhi?"

"I'll be fine, really," Haruhi laughed, nervously as she inched her way deeper into the mansion, Hitomi frowning at the scene and conversation.

"I'm a bit confused," she whispered to Kyouya as Tamaki let go of her hand and stood to turn on the twins. "What do you mean by that?"

"You'll find out eventually," he replied, holding a hand out to entreat to walk on, his other hand gently tapping her back to urge her as well. "But for now I think it would be best that you_ not_ know."

"Where are the rooms?" the twins asked, each with a hand leaning on Tamaki's forehead as he swung his fists at them, just out of reach of punching them.

"Down the hall to the left," Kyouya replied, gesturing to his left, leading Hitomi by her back toward the hall as well. "My servants will bring your luggage to your rooms."

He and Hitomi took the lead down the hall, Kyouya stopping in front of each door to assign it to one of the club members. Honey and Mori ended up sharing a room, as did the twins. Tamaki wanted to share a room with Haruhi, but both Kyouya _and_ Haruhi flatly objected, which led to Tamaki sharing a room with Kyouya, something the dark haired boy was not happy about at all. Everyone disappeared into the rooms they'd been given, leaving Kyouya and Hitomi to stroll down the end of the hall and they stopped at a closed _and_ locked door.

"I have the key," he explained, digging into his pocket as Hitomi frowned.

"Why is this room the only one with a lock?" she wondered as Kyouya fiddled with the lock and knob then turned to her without opening the door.

"Because _this_ is _your_ room," he replied, making her frown a little deeper. "When it was decided we would marry, I had a room made up for you on all the properties."

"But…_why_?" she asked, still confused. "I mean, when we get married, we'll end up sharing a bed and room anyway. Why would I have my_ own_ room?"

"I wasn't sure if you would _want_ to share a room with me," he confessed. "We weren't exactly on speaking terms after this was arranged."

"I remember, but-"

"Also, I thought it best if you had your own room as a precaution against upcoming marital disagreements," he cut in, quickly.

Hitomi's eyes widened before she gave a snicker and she smiled, "So instead of _you_ leaving the master suite, _I_ have to leave it?"

"Most women _are_ prone to leave the room themselves if the man does not," he replied seriously making her giggle before she glanced around at the empty hall and quickly pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"Thank you for the room," she whispered.

"Don't thank me until you've actually _seen_ it," he warned through a small smirk as he turned the knob he'd holding the entire time and opened the door. "After all, you may not like it."

"Well, the _gesture_ is nice," she admitted as the door swung open and Kyouya smirked as he leaned in to flip on the light. Hitomi looked into the room and her smile dropped as her eyes widened in disbelief.

The light came from a glass chandelier hanging from the ceiling, it being the only light as the huge window on the opposite end of the room was covered by heavy red drapes with black fringe lining the edges. The carpet was red and black in a checkered pattern, the walls were red with delicate, black flower patterns and the trim around the walls and the baseboards were white. The four-post, full sized bed was covered with red satin sheets with black trim on them, a retractable, black chiffon canopy above it, and a vanity sat next to the bed closer to the window. The walk-in closet could be seen on the other side of the room, facing the bed.

"I seem to recall your favorite colors being red and black," Kyouya explained, and leaned over slightly as he stood next to Hitomi to see her face as she stared around the room, wide-eyed and slack-jawed. "Was I wrong?"

"Kyouya…" she breathed, her hands slowly coming up to her mouth to cover it. "This is…almost _exactly_ like my room at home!"

"Yes," he nodded, standing tall. "I modeled it after your room. I thought you would feel more at home if I did it that way. All the rooms prepared for you have nearly followed that model to a T."

"You didn't have to do that, you know?" she whispered, knowing that she would break down if she spoke any louder than that.

"I know," he nodded, holding a hand toward the room to entreat her inside and she stepped in but he didn't follow, making her turn to him with a slight frown. "Your luggage should be here any minute. I'll come get you when we're all ready to head to the beach."

"Thank you, Kyouya," she nodded with a smile and stepped toward him again to take his hand and squeeze it lightly as she murmured, "Thank you for _everything_."

"You're too welcome, Princess Sasaki," he smirked back, lifting the hand in his and kissing it lightly, their eyes never looking away from the other's and Hitomi blushed, swallowing as he lowered her hand. "I look forward to the rest of this weekend with you."

Hitomi could only nod mutely, making him smirk as he turned and headed back down the hall. She closed the door and leaned back against it heavily with an equally heavy sigh and pressed a hand to her pounding heart.

"He doesn't have to do much, does he?" she thought aloud.

* * *

_A Half Hour Later..._

Kyouya stood in front of Hitomi's door dressed for the beach and hesitated a moment before knocking twice.

"Hitomi?" he called and frowned slightly when he heard a thud on the other side of the door. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine!" Hitomi called before some shuffling followed and a moment later the door opened and she grinned, "I just dropped my phone. Is everyone ready for the beach?"

Kyouya only nodded mutely before silently swallowing making Hitomi frown.

"Something wrong?" she wondered, and Kyouya only shook his head, subtly looking her up and down.

She was in her red bikini, the lower half covered by a black sarong with red cherry blossoms knotted on the side, revealing one of her slender legs.

"Are _you_ ok?" she asked, catching his attention and she only smirked good-naturedly. "Do I look _that_ bad?"

"On-" His voice cracked before he cleared it as Hitomi clasped her hands in front of her with a small smile. "On the contrary. You look…stunning."

Hitomi's eyes widened in shock before she turned her gaze down to keep him from seeing the blush over her cheeks as she muttered, "Thank you."

"Wow! Hito-chan! You look _gorgeous_!"

The couple jumped when Honey came bounding down the hall and stopped in front of the, holding his bunny tightly.

"Thanks, Honey-senpai," Hitomi smiled sweetly at the senior.

"Tama-chan is getting impatient, Kyo-chan," he explained, making Kyouya sigh as he adjusted his glasses.

"Of _course_ he is," he grumbled then looked to Hitomi and held an arm toward her to take. "Shall we?"

She nodded with a smile and as they started down the hall she held her hand out to Honey which he took happily, swinging it as they walked down the hall.

"There you are!" Tamaki called as he and the rest of the group stood at the front door in their beachwear.

"We wanna hit the beach already," the twins complained. "What took you?"

"That was _my_ fault, actually," Hitomi smiled, seeing Kyouya's irritation start to boil over a bit. "I took too long getting ready."

"But it was worth it!" Honey grinned, bounding toward the rest of the group before leaping up and landing on Mori's shoulders. "Doesn't she look _wonderful_, Takashi?"

"Yeah," he nodded, gripping Honey's ankles to keep him from falling off his shoulders.

"You do look great, Miss Hitomi," Haruhi nodded with a bright smile.

"Not as great as _Haruhi_ would look, right Milord?" Hikaru muttered into Tamaki's ear and the King blushed at the image _that_ comment brought about in his mind.

"Stop it!" Tamaki shouted at the twin next to him and both Hitachiin twins laughed as they ran toward the door and Tamaki ran after them as the others calmly walked to the door.

"I'm still confused about that," Hitomi whispered to Kyouya as their arms were still linked together.

"You'll have to ask _them_ about that," he replied, gesturing to Tamaki and the Twins fighting at the car outside. "I, personally, could care less about whether or not you find out, but when you do, you'll be sworn to secrecy."

"And why is that?" she smirked as they all came to the car but he stopped her, not letting go of her arm as the others piled into the car, one of Kyouya's men shutting the door behind Haruhi as she climbed in.

"Kyouya?" Tamaki called, hanging his head out the window. "Aren't you coming with us?"

"We'll be right behind you, Tamaki," Kyouya assured him, leading Hitomi away from that car to another car behind it.

"But Kyouya-!" Tamaki was cut off by the window on his window being rolled up and he quickly ducked back in just as Kyouya and Hitomi reached the other car.

"After you, Princess Sasaki," Kyouya smiled, charmingly as he opened the door for her, letting go of her arm to let her climb in.

He climbed in as well and shut the door, turning just in time to catch Hitomi when she flopped forward onto his chest, making him grunt, but he gave a smirk as he slid his arms around her.

"So, what is this big secret surrounding Mr. Fujioka?" Hitomi wondered with a sweet smile, leaning her chin on Kyouya's chest to look up at him.

"As I said before, you'll have to ask those three imbeciles," he repeated, making Hitomi giggle.

"And _why_ would I be sworn to secrecy about whatever it is if I asked?" she asked.

"If word got out about Haruhi's secret, it would hurt business for the Host Club," he replied.

"Of course," Hitomi muttered, setting her head on his chest as he looked down at her with a slight frown at her tone. "_Business_. Why did I think it would be anything different?"

"I thought we'd been through this," Kyouya recalled.

"Just because I've _accepted_ it doesn't mean I _like_ it," she grumbled and Kyouya sighed in exhaustion. "Maybe I'll just ask Haruhi?"

"If the other three _let_ you," Kyouya replied.

"Are they _that_ protective of him?" Hitomi wondered with a frown.

"Yes," Kyouya nodded, shortly and Hitomi sighed, setting her head on his chest again.

"Well, I'm really not surprised," she admitted. "Haruhi seems like the kind of person that needs protecting."

"I'll warn you once, Hitomi," Kyouya began, causing her to shift her head on his chest to look up at him. "Tamaki and the Twins will not like this, and I may not be able to protect you from their…reactions."

"Boy, this must be _some_ secret," Hitomi smirked, snuggling her cheek against his chest. "I can't _wait_ to find out."

"You are a reckless woman," Kyouya smirked, shaking his head as he lifted a hand to run his fingers through her hair.

"Yeah, but you kinda like that about me, don't you?" she smiled up at him.

"Only slightly," he retorted.

"Change of subject!" she grinned, sitting up a bit to ask, "Will you go swimming when we get to the beach?"

"Probably not," he replied, his other hand reaching for hers to press his lips to the back of her fingers before wondering, "Why do you ask?"

"Because _I_ was gonna go swimming," Hitomi explained, leaning her head on his chest again as he still held her hand, stroking his thumb gently over the back of her fingers. "But if _you_ don't want to, then…"

"If my Princess commands it, then I _must_ obey," Kyouya smirked when she trailed off, bringing her hand to his face again and leaving a long, tender kiss onto the back of her hand this time as she looked up at him with wide eyes and a blush over her cheeks. He lowered her hand, setting it on his knee as Hitomi swallowed, still staring at him. "Does my Princess command it?"

"W-Well…" she trailed off, looking away as her blush deepened. "I wouldn't want to make you do anything you don't _want_ to. And FYI, you're starting to sound like Tamaki."

"Don't spoil it," Kyouya blurted, making Hitomi giggle.

"Sorry," she smiled, snuggling against him again.

* * *

_The Beach..._

"Hikaru!" Kaoru shouted from the other side of the volleyball net. "Quit hitting the ball so high!"

"Sorry!" Hikaru laughed, waving at his twin who crossed his arms over his chest.

Hitomi giggled at the scene as Haruhi rolled her eyes as she stood with Hikaru, Honey and Mori a few yards away, building a sand castle, Tamaki sulking as he stood with Kaoru.

"Why couldn't _I_ have been on the same team as Haruhi?" he grumbled and Kaoru slapped him in the back, making the King stumble forward dramatically.

"Because Hikaru called Haruhi first, Milord," Kaoru reminded him, making Tamaki sulk a little more.

"Hey, Hitomi!" Haruhi called, waving at her as she sat under an umbrella next to Kyouya as he read over a magazine. "You wanna play?"

"But it'll be uneven odds if I play!" Hitomi laughed.

"Don't refuse on account of _me_, Hitomi," Kyouya chimed in, drawing her attention to him, but he didn't look at her. "If you want to play, go ahead."

"But the teams will be uneven," she repeated, then gave a devious smirk an leaned toward him to murmur, "Unless _you_ wanna play too."

"Don't be silly," he replied, flatly and Hitomi pouted, sitting back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest.

"What happened to the _adventurous_ Kyouya I'd fallen for recently?" she muttered, making him finally look up at her. She met his gaze and he raised a brow of intrigue at her, but she only matched it making him smirk.

"Fine," he blurted, closing the magazine and standing, making Hitomi frown in wonder at him before he turned to her and held a hand out to help her out of her chair. "Shall we?"

Hitomi's mouth imitated a fish out of water as she glanced between his hand and smirk but she soon took his hand and he pulled her to her feet, never letting go of her as they approached the four.

"We'll play," he called, making the four stop and stare at him in shock as they stopped near the net.

"Who's team am I on?" Hitomi grinned, letting go of Kyouya's hand and attempting to be as normal as possible to stop them from staring.

"You can play with _us_, Miss Hitomi," Haruhi replied, everyone still stunned at the fact that _Kyouya_ was willing to play as well.

"I suppose that leaves _me_ on Tamaki's team, as usual," Kyouya guessed, strolling toward the opposite side of the net Hitomi was headed.

"_This_ should be interesting," Hikaru smirked as Hitomi passed behind him. She stopped and leaned an arm on his shoulder, making him jump and look at her in surprise as she only smirked.

"Go easy on him," she murmured with a wink and Hikaru's smirk returned as she stood tall and stood between him and Haruhi.

"Alright!" Hikaru cheered, holding the ball and smiling at Hitomi. "You know how to play volleyball?"

Hitomi gave a small chuckle before stepping back toward him and murmuring, "I think I can figure it out."

"Serve the ball, Hikaru!" Tamaki called, suddenly more than eager to play.

"Patience is a virtue, Milord!" Hikaru laughed, but one second later he served the ball and it bounced right off of Tamaki's head, making everyone laugh as Kyouya only shook his head in exasperation.

"Our point!" Haruhi called making Tamaki glare at her before picking the ball up and serving it.

The ball sailed over the net and toward Haruhi who hit it and effectively sent it toward Kaoru on the other side. Kaoru almost missed it, diving to hit it and sending it over the net to Hikaru who quickly adjusted and accidentally sent it to Hitomi who quickly adjusted and hit it with perfect form over the net. The ball sailed toward Kyouya who wasn't really paying attention and it bounced off of his head making him wince and glare at her as she giggled.

"Sorry," she smiled, sweetly as Kyouya rubbed his head.

"Your serve, Kyouya," Kaoru called, and the dark haired boy picked up the ball to serve, sending the game into play for ten more minutes, Hikaru, Haruhi and Hitomi's team starting to win.

Tamaki made a serve in anger that his team was losing and the ball soared high into the air, causing the three on the other side of the net to look up, not paying attention to their surroundings. Hitomi and Hikaru both started to head toward the ball as it came down, Haruhi taking a few steps but stopping when she realized what would happen if she were thrown into the mix.

"I got it!"

Hitomi and Hikaru both jumped for it but rammed into each other mid-air, sending them both to the ground.

"Hikaru!" Kaoru called, ducking under the net first, followed by Kyouya and Tamaki. He knelt next to his twin and hoped, "You ok?"

"I'm fine," Hikaru smirked, shaking the rattling from his head then looked to Hitomi as she sat in the sand, Kyouya, Tamaki and Haruhi kneeling around her, Honey and Mori hurrying toward the group. He scrambled to his feet and knelt in front of her as Kaoru followed him and he asked, "Are you alright, Princess Hitomi?"

"Does she _look_ alright, you clumsy deviant?" Kyouya snapped, drawing everyone's attention to him.

"Hey, it was an _accident_, Kyouya," Hikaru snapped back. "It's not like I _aimed_ to ram into her! I'm even making sure she's alright! Just because she's your girlfriend-!"

"Hikaru," Kaoru cut in, placing a hand on his twin's shoulder, and Hikaru took in a breath, straightening before looking to Hitomi.

"Are you ok?" he asked, strained.

"I'm fine, thank you, Hikaru," she nodded rubbing her wrist. "I just twisted my wrist."

"_I_ can take care of that," Tamaki grinned, breaking the tension as he gently took Hitomi's hand and looked her in the eye with a charming smile asking, "Where does it hurt?"

"My wrist," she repeated with a slight frown and Tamaki nodded, gently taking her arm as his other hand gripped Kyouya's shoulder to bring him closer, lifting Hitomi's wrist to Kyouya's face.

"Tamaki-?"

"The Shadow King must kiss the Princess's wrist to help it heal," Tamaki announced, taking his hand from Kyouya's shoulder to place it over his heart, then urged her wrist toward Kyouya gently. "Go on, Kyouya."

Kyouya gave a sigh of exasperation before lifting a hand to take Hitomi's, gently. Their gazes met, making Hitomi swallow as he remained silent before glancing to her wrist and leaning his face toward it to press his lips to it, gently. Pulling away he looked at Hitomi as a blush spread over her cheeks and he lowered her wrist.

"Better?" he whispered, afraid that speaking in anything louder than that would make his voice crack.

"Much better, thank you," Hitomi nodded before swallowing again.

"Magnifique!" Tamaki grinned, shooting to his feet as Hikaru stood as well, glaring at Kyouya while Kaoru tried to pull his twin away. "Let's get something to eat!"

"Hito-chan?" Honey called, stepping toward her and holding his pink bunny toward her. "Do you want to hold Usa-chan for a while to make you feel better?"

Hitomi stared at him for a moment with wide eyes before softening her expression to a warm smile and nodding, "I'd love to, Honey-senpai. Thank you."

She gently took Usa-chan into her other hand and hugged him close, making Honey grin.

"Let's get something to eat, then," Kyouya suddenly agreed, not moving from Hitomi's side as Tamaki and the Twins began their usual fight over Haruhi, shoving each other out of the way of standing next to her as Honey jumped high onto Mori's shoulders and Kyouya looked to Hitomi to murmur, "Are you _really_ alright?"

"I'm fine, Kyouya," she assured him then leaned closer to whisper, "And it _was_ an accident."

He looked at her over his glasses before adjusting them and looking away to stand and step in front of her to hold a hand out to her. She glanced between his face and his hand before shifting Usa-chan in her arms and taking his hand so that he could pull her to her feet. She stumbled a step toward him, bumping into him and almost falling again, but he wrapped his arms around her to keep her steady.

"Sorry," she breathed before looking up at him and their gazes locked for a moment before he nodded, stepping back enough to hold out his arm to her which she glanced at before slipping her arm around his.

"Onward for sustenance!" Tamaki cheered, gripping Haruhi's wrist and running down the beach.

"Wait up, Milord!" the twins shouted, running after him. "It's still _our_ turn with Haruhi!"

* * *

**A/N:** more cuteness. i couldn't resist some of these scenes, even if Kyouya is a litle OOC. reviews?


End file.
